NEW YORK, April 4 (Reuters) – A judge’s order to stop construction work on a White House ballroom poses security risks, the Trump administration argued in an emergency motion that seeks to set aside the ruling.
The emergency motion filed on Friday in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia argues that U.S. District Judge Richard Leon’s decision has left the executive mansion “open and exposed” and is “threatening grave national-security harms to the White House, the President and his family, and the President’s staff.”
Leon on Tuesday ruled that construction work on a White House ballroom must pause while a lawsuit works its way through the courts. The lawsuit seeks to halt the $400 million project on the site of the recently demolished East Wing, with plaintiffs arguing that it needs approval from Congress to proceed.
Leon, an appointee of Republican former President George W. Bush, said he was pausing his order for 14 days in order to allow the administration of President Donald Trump to appeal his decision.
The new motion filed by the National Park Service said the federal district court lacks the constitutional authority “to entertain this suit, which rests on a single pedestrian’s subjective architectural feelings.”
The initial lawsuit against the construction was brought by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, a nonprofit organization, alleging Trump exceeded his authority when he razed the historic East Wing and launched construction on the new building.
Friday’s motion by the administration argues the claims by the Trust are “legally baseless” and that “no Trust member has standing.” In addition, it claims that “the President has complete authority to renovate the White House.”
The East Wing was originally built in 1902 and expanded four decades later during Franklin D. Roosevelt’s presidency.
The ballroom is part of Trump’s broader push to reshape Washington’s monumental core, which also includes plans for a 250-foot (76-meter) arch and changes at the Kennedy Center.
(Reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak; Editing by Toby Chopra)
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