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| Demolition in action for Trump's ballroom (AP) |
Imagine you are renting a house and decide to tear out a fireplace in order to build a rumpus room -- and you make this alteration without consulting anyone -- including the owner, your landlord. Do you have a problem on your hands? The answer probably is yes because U.S. law holds that a landlord generally is responsible for major alterations -- not you, the tenant. Here is how superlawyers.com puts it:
The landlord is responsible for structural improvements, habitability needs, and major home systems. As the property owner, they are responsible for keeping the property compliant with building codes and health regulations. They will also address tenant requests for repairs and maintenance to the building. . . .
Typically, daily maintenance and minor repairs are the tenant’s responsibility. The tenant is also responsible for making repairs to the damage they caused. If the tenant wants to make major changes or improvements, they will likely need the approval of the landlord. This restriction is typically included in the lease. There may also be a term that requires the tenant to restore the property to its pre-lease condition if they do make significant changes.
You probably are thinking: "That's a simple concept: If you don't own it, don't mess with it." Yes, it is simple, but it's still too complicated for Donald J. Trump, president of the United States. That's why Richard J. Leon, senior U.S. judge for the District of Columbia, issued an injunction yesterday, bringing construction of Trump's grand White House ballroom to a halt. From a jointly published report at CNN and AOL under the headline "Judge rules that White House ballroom construction 'has to stop!'" Devan Cole and Betsy Klein write:
A federal judge on Tuesday blocked President Donald Trump from moving ahead with any further work on a massive new $400 million ballroom on the former site of the White House East Wing.
“The President of the United States is the steward of the White House for future generations of First Families. He is not, however, the owner!” Judge Richard Leon wrote.
Leon, an appointee of former President George W. Bush, said he was delaying implementation of his ruling for two weeks to allow the government to appeal. But he warned that “any above-ground construction over the next fourteen days that is not in compliance” with his ruling “is at risk of being taken down depending on the outcome of this case.”
The Trump administration immediately told the judge it will appeal.
Where did Trump go wrong? Leon spelled it out in language that should be clear -- even to Trump. Cole and Klein write:
The crux of the issue, Leon concluded in his decision, was that Trump had not received approval from lawmakers to undertake the bold construction project, which he said was required by federal law.
“(U)nless and until Congress blesses this project through statutory authorization, construction has to stop!” he wrote, adding that the good news” is that Trump and Congress can work to authorize the project.
Will a chastened Trump take the judge's advice, seek approval from Congress, and proceed under rules that generally apply for renovations of public facilities that belong to the people -- and require consent of the people's legislative body? We aren't holding our breath. From the CNN/AOL report:
Trump, a former real estate developer, has been personally involved in ballroom details, from floor plans to marble selection. “I’m so busy that I don’t have time to do this, but – I’m fighting wars and other things, but this is very important, because this is going to be with us for a long time,” he told reporters aboard Air Force One Sunday evening, adding, “I think it’ll be the greatest ballroom anywhere in the world.”
That quote from Trump is telling. It suggests that, in his narcissistic mind, any idea that originates with him is great -- and anything that results from it will be among the greatest of its kind in the world. And because of that, he should not need the consent of anyone -- even for properties that HE . . . DOES . . . NOT . . . OWN. How grand are Trump's ballroom plans? They are so grand Trump is convinced that he, and he alone, has final say over it. CNN/AOL have the details:
The ballroom project has an estimated size of approximately 89,000 square feet, according to lead architect Shalom Baranes. By contrast, the primary White House structure, the Executive Mansion, is just 55,000 square feet.
Trump has maintained that the project isn’t subject to any oversight and that he should be able to continue with it without any serious scrutiny. He has promised it will be complete in the summer of 2028, months before he leaves office.
In what should be a surprise to no one, Trump was highly peeved that a mere federal judge would usurp his authority. In a joint report, The New Republic and Yahoo! News have details on Trump's reaction:
Trump, incensed, took to Truth Social to rail against Leon’s decision.
“The National Trust for Historic Preservation sues me for a Ballroom that is under budget, ahead of schedule, being built at no cost to the Taxpayer, and will be the finest Building of its kind anywhere in the World. I then get sued by them over the renovation of the dilapidated and structurally unsound former Kennedy Center, now, The Trump Kennedy Center (a show of Bipartisan Unity, a Republican and Democrat President!), where all I am doing is fixing, cleaning, running, and ‘sprucing up’ a terribly maintained, for many years,” Trump wrote. “Yet, The National Trust for Historic Preservation, a Radical Left Group of Lunatics whose funding was stopped by Congress in 2005, is not suing the Federal Reserve for a Building which has been decimated and destroyed, inside and out, by an incompetent and possibly corrupt Fed Chairman.”
Trump’s ballroom was initially projected to cost $200 million, and the price has since ballooned to double that.
That last paragraph suggests, contrary to Trump's claims, the ballroom project is not on particularly sound financial footing. And has Trump offered any proof the project will be built at no cost to taxpayers? I'm not aware of it. Gee, the president wouldn't lie to us, would he?
An online query produced this result from AI Overview:
As of late March 2026, President Trump claims his proposed White House ballroom is funded entirely by private donations, costing taxpayers nothing. While asserting this on social media and in statements, specific donor names or audited financial records proving this have not been publicly released.
In issuing the injunction, Judge Leon seemed to go out of his way to be magnanimous to the president. From CNN/AOL:
Throughout the 35-page ruling, Leon repeatedly emphasized that Congress has a role to play in the project.
“The President may at any time go to Congress to obtain express authority to construct a ballroom and to do so with private funds,” Leon wrote. “Indeed, Congress may even choose to appropriate funds for the ballroom, or at least decide that some other funding scheme is acceptable.”
“Either way, Congress will thereby retain its authority over the nation’s property and its oversight over the Government’s spending,” the judge wrote. “And the American people will benefit from the branches of Government exercising their constitutionally prescribed roles. Not a bad outcome, that!”
The judge did find that Trump's lawyers relied on flawed legal arguments, almost as if to say, "Hey, you're fine, Mr. President. You might want to try better lawyers next time." From CNN/AOL:
In ruling against Trump, Leon also said the president had improperly relied on a federal law that gives presidents the authority to use congressional funds for the “care, maintenance, repair” and “alteration” of the White House, among other things, to justify his decision to unilaterally move ahead with construction.
That law, the judge said, does not allow for the “wholesale demolition of entire buildings and construction of new ones.”
“Under defendants’ reading, virtually any change to the White House could be framed as an ‘alteration’ or ‘improvement,’” he wrote. “Indeed, some might even view tearing down the White House and building a modem skyscraper in its place as an ‘improvement.’”
As Leon made clear, issues related to federal property touch on a number of entities, and representatives for several of them weighed in after yesterday's ruling:
Carol Quillen, the president and CEO of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, meanwhile, called Tuesday’s ruling “a win for the American people.”
“We are pleased with Judge Leon’s ruling today to order a halt to any further ballroom construction until the administration complies with the law and obtains express authorization to go forward,” she said.
In a phone interview with CNN, Rep. Jared Huffman of California, the top Democrat on the House Committee on Natural Resources, which would have some jurisdiction over the project should it ultimately come to Congress, said he planned to be “very actively engaged” going forward.
“I think there’s no other way to read this; they have to come to Congress. I know they hate doing this, but we are not potted plants in the legislative,” Huffman said.
The White House has repeatedly said that any above-grade construction could begin as soon as April – and the ruling also comes days before a key commission stacked with Trump loyalists is expected to green-light the plans.
The National Capital Planning Commission, which oversees planning for federal buildings and land in the nation’s capital, is set to hold a final vote on the project Thursday morning that is widely expected to pass despite thousands of public comments overwhelmingly opposing the plans.
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