A federal judge said that he will not temporarily halt the construction of President Trump’s White House ballroom following a lawsuit from the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
U.S. District Judge Richard Leon said on Tuesday that the organization did not adequately show that “great and certain” harm would come if Trump did not temporarily halt construction, noting that below-ground work will not begin until January and above-ground work is scheduled for April, per the Hill.
Leon did, however, put the Trump administration on “fair notice” that it should be prepared to remove below-ground changes if it were to alter the above-ground structure.
“If it does, then the court will address it — I can assure you of that,” Leon said.
The administration has until the end of December to submit its construction plans to two federal review panels.
“The preservation group sued Friday, asking for a temporary restraining order to stop the project until after it wins congressional approval and goes through multiple independent reviews and a public comment period,” noted the Hill.
“They argued that the administration skirted laws that require consultation with the National Capital Planning Commission and Commission of Fine Arts before making significant changes,” it added.
The Trump administration has countered, saying that the construction of the ballroom is a matter of national security, per the Associated Press (AP).
“The administration’s 36-page filing included a declaration from Matthew C. Quinn, deputy director of the U.S. Secret Service, the agency responsible for the security of the president and other high-ranking officials, that said more work on the site of the former White House East Wing is still needed to meet the agency’s ‘safety and security requirements,’” noted the AP.
“The filing did not explain the specific national security concerns; the administration has offered to share classified details with the judge in a private, in-person setting without the plaintiffs present,” it added.
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