D.C. Circuit upholds injunction blocking Trump from building White House ballroom

President Donald Trump demolished the East Wing of the White House last October, planning to replace it with a new structure that includes a 90,000-square-foot ballroom. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ruled on Friday that Trump lacked the legal authority to do so, stating he may not complete the project unless and until Congress approves it.

"Each President is a temporary tenant, not the owner, of the White House and its Executive Residence," wrote Judge Patricia Millett, a Barack Obama appointee, in an opinion joined by Judge Bradley Garcia, who was nominated by Joe Biden. "We are aware of no instance in American history in which a President unilaterally and using privately collected funds demolished substantial portions of the White House that Congress authorized to be built and American taxpayers paid for. Until now."

Case Background

The decision in National Trust for Historic Preservation v. National Park Service upholds a preliminary injunction that U.S. District Judge Richard Leon, a George W. Bush nominee, issued on March 31 and later modified to exclude underground construction and parts of the project "strictly necessary" for security purposes.

• Leon's order never took effect because the D.C. Circuit temporarily blocked it while the government's appeal was pending.
• The injunction remains on hold because the D.C. Circuit gave the Trump administration 14 days to file an appeal with the Supreme Court.
• The president said he will appeal.

Legal Reasoning

Whatever its ultimate effect, the D.C. Circuit's decision affirms the rule of law and the separation of powers by rejecting Trump's claim that he can do whatever he wants with the White House. According to Trump's logic, Millett noted, citing Leon's opinion, "the President could bulldoze the entire White House and replace it with a new building of his own design, including a 'skyscraper.'"

The government conceded that the Constitution assigns control of federal property to Congress. However, it cited several statutes that it said combined to authorize the replacement of the East Wing with a structure that would be:

• 60 percent larger than the White House residence in square footage
• More than three times as large in cubic volume

Like Leon, the D.C. Circuit rejected this argument. "Congress does not 'hide elephants in mouseholes,'" Millett said, quoting a 2001 opinion by Justice Antonin Scalia, whom Trump has described as the very model of a "great" jurist.

"If Congress, acting against the backdrop of other statutes that strictly limit construction within Park System units in the District of Columbia, and which require the government to jump through significant procedural hoops to accept even donations of furniture at the White House, wanted to convey to the President unchecked construction authority over the White House, we would expect it to do so with language saying just that," Millett wrote.

Relevant Statutes

Congress never provided such explicit authorization. However, it did enact 40 USC 8106, which states: "a building or structure shall not be erected on any reservation, park, or public grounds of the Federal Government in the District of Columbia without express authority of Congress."

In lieu of such "express authority," the Trump administration cited 54 USC 100101, which says the National Park Service (NPS) "shall promote and regulate the use of the National Park System by means and measures" that aim to "conserve the scenery, natural and historic objects, and wild life" of the system's units. Those units include the White House and the rest of President's Park. Although demolishing a major component of that park might not appear to "conserve" a "historic object," the Trump administration argued that the project fits within the statute.