The US$400 million ballroom is part of the US president’s broader push to reshape Washington’s core
2-MIN READ2-MIN ListenReutersPublished: 3:45am, 1 Apr 2026A US judge blocked Donald Trump on Tuesday from proceeding with construction of a US$400 million ballroom on the site of the White House’s demolished East Wing, halting for now one of the Republican president’s most visible efforts to reshape the seat of American power.
US District Judge Richard Leon in Washington granted a request for a preliminary injunction by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, a non-profit organisation that brought a lawsuit alleging Trump exceeded his authority when he razed the historic East Wing and launched construction without approval from Congress.
The decision by Leon, an appointee of Republican President George W. Bush, bars construction work on the 90,000 sq ft ballroom project from proceeding without congressional approval while the lawsuit continues.
Trump has championed the ballroom as a defining addition to the White House and a lasting symbol of his presidency.
Leon’s ruling marks a sharp setback for the US Justice Department, which opposed the injunction and has defended the ballroom as an allowable alteration that modernises the White House grounds.
Demolition begins on White House East Wing for Trump ballroom
Demolition begins on White House East Wing for Trump ballroomThe National Trust sued Trump and several federal agencies in December after the administration demolished the East Wing – originally constructed in 1902 and expanded during Franklin Roosevelt’s presidency – to make way for what Trump has vowed will be the “finest” ballroom in the country.
