SCOTUS Hands Trump a Win on Ballroom Project

A divided Supreme Court on Monday allowed the White House to continue construction on a $400 million ballroom project as lawsuits play out, a win for President Trump as he flexes unprecedented executive power and remakes the capital in his image. The decision replaces a temporary order from Chief Justice John Roberts previously issued hours before a lower-court decision halting the work would have gone into effect, the AP reports. Roberts publicly dissented from the latest order, however, joining with the court's three liberal-leaning justices, who called the construction "likely unlawful."

The majority did not decide the legality of the project but found a preservation group likely did not have the legal right to challenge it. Those justices found that National Trust for Historic Preservation didn't suffer direct harm from the project, meaning it lacked standing to bring the suit, the Washington Post reports.

• The lawsuit will return to lower courts, but documents say that key portions of the project could be complete within months—a quick timeline compared with a typical legal case. The Trump administration asked the justices to intervene after federal courts found the project must halt because it didn't have congressional approval.

• The lawsuit from the National Trust argued that Trump has no unilateral authority to undertake the work, which has included demolishing the East Wing. The group's lawyers accused the White House of trying to "outrun the courts" by accelerating construction.
• In lower courts, the administration has argued that the president has total authority to renovate the White House and other federal buildings. Government lawyers said the ballroom project must be completed due to national security concerns, though those were not an initial focus when Trump announced the work, which he said would be funded by private donations.
• The administration has said crews are working 20 hours a day on the planned 90,000-square-foot ballroom. The framework is expected to be completed in November and much of the facade done by April, with full completion slated for August 2028, according to court documents.