Chief Justice John Roberts delivered a temporary but significant win for President Trump on Friday, allowing construction on the White House ballroom to proceed while the legal challenges to the project play out. As Trump races to replace the demolished East Wing of the White House with a 90,000-square-foot ballroom atop a military and medical complex, Roberts entered an administrative stay that will give the Supreme Court more time to consider whether lower courts were right in ordering a halt to some of the construction.
Trump said in a social media post that he is "grateful" for the decision. "The Military/Ballroom Complex being built on the hallowed grounds of the White House, which is so vital for National Security, will be THE GREATEST OF ITS KIND!" he wrote, adding, "Construction is under budget and ahead of schedule."
A federal district court and an appeals court in Washington, D.C., had both ordered a halt to aboveground work on the project, ruling that Trump likely exceeded his authority by starting demolition and construction without congressional approval. Both of those courts allowed work to continue while the administration appealed, though the halt was set to take effect on Friday unless the Supreme Court intervened.
In an emergency appeal to the high court last Friday, the administration said that the president has the legal authority to alter or improve the White House and that the project was already 65% complete, making it too late to stop work. Solicitor General D. John Sauer also argued that a halt to construction would raise national security concerns. Though Trump had repeatedly insisted that the White House needs a large ballroom to host VIP guests, he and the administration shifted their description of the project more recently to emphasize its military and security aspects, arguing that the various elements comprise one integrated whole.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation, which brought the lawsuit seeking to block the ballroom, says that the Trump administration has no authority to build the ballroom without approval from Congress and can't use national security to bypass the Constitution. It argues that the administration is trying to outrun the courts and the rule of law by speeding up construction and contesting the authority of judges to stop the project. The administration said that a 250-person crew has been working 20 hours a day, seven days a week to complete the work.
While the Roberts order allows all construction to continue, it does not address the underlying legal dispute. The full Supreme Court reportedly is expected to weigh in on whether construction can continue while the litigation plays out — but there's no indication when the court might hand down a broader decision in the case.
The bottom line: Trump has racked up a number of wins — and some losses — at the Supreme Court as he asserts unprecedented presidential power. This latest one means that his ballroom blitz can continue, at least for now.