A US federal appeals court has halted construction of a $400 million ballroom at the White House, siding with historic preservationists who sued to stop the project. The ballroom, spanning 90,000 square feet (8,400 square meters), was being built after the Trump administration demolished the historic East Wing without congressional authorization.

The court's order upheld a preliminary injunction won by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, which filed the lawsuit last year. District court judge Richard Leon noted in a March opinion that the incomplete construction poses concerns about the safety and security of the White House grounds and the President, highlighting the existence of a "large hole" beside the White House as a problem of the President's own making.

In response, former President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social, calling the decision a "National Security Threat at the highest level." He emphasized that Presidents, elected by the American people, have rights including to "fix, renovate, secure, protect, and beautify the White House grounds," and criticized the halt after much of the work had been completed and paid for.

Separately, New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport stressed the state's duty to uphold civil rights, including humane treatment and adequate medical care for detained individuals, including those held by private corporations. Oregon’s Democratic Governor Tina Kotek expressed support for locally set moratoriums on new data center construction, following the city of Hillsboro's recent temporary prohibition.

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