The US Supreme Court on Friday temporarily authorized the continuation of construction work on the monumental ballroom wanted by Donald Trump at the White House. The highest judicial body in the country, seized by the American president, temporarily blocked a previous judgment which ordered the cessation of work on the ballroom on Friday, at midnight.
The appeal court observed that the cessation of work had “nothing to do” with the merits of the project itself, but considered that the American president should have requested the green light from Congress. According to the decision of the Court, with a conservative majority, the ballroom project, which is opposed by associations defending cultural heritage, can resume while the legal procedure continues before the lower courts.
The project is 65% complete
A federal court ordered the work to stop on August 7. Donald Trump called the decision a “national disgrace”. The Supreme Court also accepted the national security argument put forward by the American administration.
In its appeal, the government maintained that a “military complex” would be integrated into the ballroom, which would therefore not be just a simple reception space. He also argued that the imposing project was already 65% complete and that leaving it as is, exposed to the elements, would be detrimental from an aesthetic point of view.
