Trump Posts Rant After Appeals Court Blocks Ballroom, Vows to ‘Immediately’ Appeal to Supreme Court

(AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

President Donald Trump vowed to “immediately” appeal to the Supreme Court after a federal appeals court ruled Friday to  block construction of his ballroom because it didn’t receive congressional approval.

“The White House is the People’s House, and under the Constitution’s Property Clause, Congress exercises plenary control over the building and its surrounding land,” the  U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia wrote Friday in its 2-1 ruling to block construction.

In a lengthy Truth Social post, Trump referred to the ballroom as a “desperately needed Military Center” and blamed “two Obama and Biden Appellate Court Judges” for voting against it.

The president quoted from the dissent of his own appointee, Judge Neomi Rao, where she slammed her colleagues’ decision as “a blatant abuse of discretion” and argued that “construction should be allowed to continue.”

Trump defended the ballroom by claiming, “The Military and Secret Service are viewing this horrendous, politically motivated, and unlawful ruling as a National Security threat to our Nation in that the entire Complex is being built for the protection of our Country and, additionally, all future Presidents.”

He continued making his case:

The single, integrated project includes Bomb Shelters, State of the Art Hospital and Medical Facilities, Protective Partitioning, Top Secret Military Facilities, Structures and Equipment, Protective Missile Resistant Steel, Columns, Roofs, and Beams, Drone Proof Ceilings and Roofs, Military Grade Venting, and Bullet, Ballistic, and Blast Proof Glass. It is all tied together as one big, expensive, and very complex unit, which is vital for National Security and Military Operations of the United States of America! The Circuit Court’s decision, which is totally wrong on the vital subject of STANDING, of which the plaintiff has none, severely jeopardizes the lives and welfare of the people who work, and will be working, at the White House — including all future Presidents of the United States, and their families, as well as the lives of all those visiting, such as Heads of State and other Dignitaries, and all Americans who wish to visit the historic, beautiful Executive Mansion.

“The entire Complex, Military and all, is largely built, fabricated, and paid for. Much is already on site, or being delivered,” Trump wrote. “Why didn’t they bring this case long prior to construction starting?”

The lawsuit to stop construction was filed in December, after Trump quietly rushed through demolition of the East Wing in October 2025. The Commission of Fine Arts and the National Capital Planning Commission didn’t approve the ballroom’s design until early 2026.

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