WASHINGTON--The U.S. Supreme Court in a 5-4 ruling on Monday let Donald Trump's administration continue construction of his White House ballroom complex while the president challenges a judicial order that would halt much of the development, with Chief Justice John Roberts in a dissent calling the project "likely unlawful."
The court granted the administration's request to block a lower court's order halting above-ground construction of the $400 million ballroom while a lawsuit by a historic preservation group seeking to stop the project proceeds.
The nonprofit National Trust for Historic Preservation sued last year after the administration tore down the White House East Wing and began building a 90,000-square-foot (8,360-square-meter) ballroom without seeking specific approval from Congress. Trump has said the ballroom will be "the greatest of its kind ever built."
Monday's ruling, lauded by Trump, was powered by five of the court's six conservative justices. They wrote that the plaintiffs lacked the necessary legal standing to sue. They also said the government would likely suffer "irreparable harm" if the project were blocked, citing national security concerns.
Roberts was the only conservative justice to dissent. He was joined in his dissent by the court's three liberal justices.
The ballroom construction is "likely unlawful," Roberts wrote, noting that Congress has "plenary constitutional authority over the District of Columbia and federal property" and that it has prohibited structures from being built on federal government grounds in Washington, D.C., without its authorization.
"The ballroom is a building or structure being erected on federal park grounds — President's Park — in the District of Columbia. Yet Congress has not passed any law resembling 'express authority' for the Executive's construction of it," Roberts wrote.
Trump in a social media post welcomed the ruling and called the legal challenge baseless. "I am pleased to report that the United States Supreme Court has just ruled in favor of the Ballroom/Military Complex being built without any further contingency, doubt, or threat. We are living in the Golden Age of America, and this Building will be one of the Greatest ever constructed in Washington, D.C.," the Republican president wrote.
The project combines the above-ground ballroom with an extensive underground complex. Trump has said the project includes bomb shelters, medical facilities, shielding from drones and missiles and other security features that are "all tied together as one big, expensive and very complex unit." Construction continues on the lower levels of the ballroom structure, with walls and floors visible.
