Trump's ballroom approved by a planning committee, but blocked by a judge

On Tuesday, a federal judge ordered a halt to the construction of this new ballroom, dealing a serious blow to one of the most ambitious projects undertaken on this famous site for over a century.

Despite this decision, the review process by the National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC), largely composed of Trump allies, continued as planned. By a vote of eight to one, the commission approved the construction of the two-story, 8.360-square-meter building.

"This decision (by the judge) has no bearing on our work today. (...) From my point of view, we are dealing with a project. We have been asked to review it, and that is precisely our mission today," explained Will Scharf, chairman of the planning committee, which is in charge of government sites in the Washington area.

Donald Trump thanked the commission in a post on his Truth Social network.

"I would like to thank the dedicated Commissioners and staff of the Commission (...), who have just voted overwhelmingly, 8 to 1, in favor of the magnificent White House ballroom," he wrote, captioning a photo of the American president smiling in front of the construction site.

This green light, which has no direct impact on the outcome of the saga, contrasts with the repeated criticisms of the project by architects and heritage specialists.

In December, the National Trust for Historic Preservation (NTHP), a non-profit organization mandated by Congress for the preservation of historic buildings, had taken legal action against the project.

She accuses the Trump administration of not respecting legal requirements for public inquiry, nor obtaining authorization from Congress for this project, whose budget, financed by private donations, has doubled, going from $200 million to $400 million.

The judge suspended the entry into force of his decision for two weeks and the government appealed.

In October, the Republican president had an entire wing of the White House bulldozed to build this ballroom, intended to accommodate up to 1.000 people for various receptions and dinners in honor of foreign dignitaries.

Donald Trump, for whom this is a particularly dear subject, now very frequently mentions the progress of the construction of the east wing of the presidential residence, during public appearances with no apparent connection to the work.