Trump asks Supreme Court to restart $400 million White House ballroom work
What's next: Chief Justice John Roberts gave challengers until Tuesday to respond before a lower-court halt takes effect Aug. 21.
President Donald Trump's administration asked the Supreme Court on Friday to let construction resume on a $400 million White House ballroom while it appeals a lower-court order blocking the project. The request seeks to freeze a D.C. Circuit ruling that found Trump lacked authority to press ahead without congressional approval.
The appeals court last week ordered aboveground work stopped on the planned 90,000-square-foot ballroom, to be built where the East Wing stood before its demolition last fall. The administration argues the president can renovate the White House without approval from Congress and that leaving the site partly built creates security risks. Historic preservationists sued to stop the project, while a dissenting appeals judge argued they lacked standing.