The US Supreme Court on Monday rejected an appeal from a historic preservation group that sought to indefinitely stop the construction of a ballroom at the White House. In a 5-4 vote, the court held that the National Trust for Historic Preservation (NTHP) lacked the standing to challenge the ballroom, without ruling on its legality.
Under President Trump’s direction, the federal government demolished the East Wing of the White House in December 2025. This cleared the ground needed for a 90,000 square foot ballroom. Later that month, the NTHP filed the lawsuit, asking the US District Court for the District of Columbia to halt construction until the project had been through the legally required review process, which includes a public comment period. In March 2026, the district court granted the injunction, which set off a series of back and forth cases.
On August 7, the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit affirmed the injunction, ruling that only Congress could authorize the ballroom. Trump appealed to the Supreme Court on August 14.
The five-justice majority also accepted the president’s recent national security arguments in favor of the ballroom and the military installations beneath it. The administration has cited the recent threat that led Trump to return from Europe on a cargo plane rather than the designated Air Force One, along with an alleged plot to disrupt the UFC fight at the White House, the shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner, and shootings in Butler, PA and near Trump’s golf course in Florida. The Department of Justice (DOJ) says that all of these were assassination attempts.
To these arguments, the administration has recently added that too much of the ballroom has already been built to stop construction now. DOJ says that it is 65 percent complete, with a structure that is five stories deep and 70 feet tall.
Chief Justice Roberts sided with Justices Sotomayor, Kagan, and Jackson. In his dissent, Roberts wrote, “(ballroom) construction is likely unlawful…The White House is not just any building…Today’s decision is no victory for the separation of powers.”
With the ruling, the case returns to the lower courts. However, the framework is expected to be finished by November, with the facade finished by April and the ballroom to be completed by August 2028.