On Friday, August 7th, 2026, a federal appeals court affirmed a U.S. judge’s ruling to block construction of a new ballroom at the White House, allowing only below-ground construction to proceed.

In a 2-1 decision, the court upheld a modified preliminary injunction against the project. However, the ruling was stayed for 14 days to give the Trump administration time to appeal to the Supreme Court.

The court emphasized that the decision to construct a massive ballroom rests with Congress, not the Executive Branch. The ruling stated, “Whether or not a massive ballroom should be constructed is for Congress to decide and is not a matter for Executive self-help.” It further explained that the Constitution assigns Congress the responsibility to approve physical changes to the White House, even if those changes are claimed to serve security interests.

The court also noted, “Each President is a temporary tenant, not the owner, of the White House and its Executive Residence. The President has no — and claims no — constitutionally assigned authority over that property.”

According to the ruling, in October 2025, President Trump bulldozed the entire East Wing over three days without promised consultations or congressional permission to build a 90,000 square-foot ballroom funded privately and without congressional oversight.

The dissenting judge, Trump appointee Neomi Rao, argued that the lower court had “abused its discretion in seizing control of construction at the President’s home and office.” She had previously allowed some construction aspects to proceed but later contended the administration misused a safety and security exception to justify the entire ballroom project.

The White House has not yet responded to requests for comment.

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