US court blocks Trump’s US$400 million White House ballroom project

A US federal appeal court on Friday ordered President Donald Trump’s administration to stop construction on a US$400 million ballroom on the site of the White House’s demolished East Wing, dealing the Republican leader a major setback in a ‌case testing his presidential authority.The Washington-based US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in a divided 2-1 order upheld a preliminary injunction won by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, which sued last year after the administration tore down the East Wing and began building a 90,000 square feet (8,360 square metre) ballroom without seeking authorisation from Congress.“Whether a massive ballroom should be constructed is for Congress to decide and is not a matter for Executive self-help,” the panel’s majority wrote. “Congress has not ⁠ceded unfettered authority to the Executive Branch to dramatically redesign, reshape, and reconstruct the White House – the People’s House – to fit a particular ‌President’s desires.”Construction of a ballroom at the White House. The ballroom plan is the grandest of several ‌Trump efforts ‌to reshape central Washington’s landscape of government buildings and national monuments. Photo: ReutersThe appeal court placed its ruling on hold for 14 days to allow the Trump administration to appeal to the US Supreme Court. The White House and Justice Department did not immediately respond to ‌requests for comment.