President Donald Trump’s White House ballroom is still under construction — and a lower-court order won’t stop it.
Chief Justice John Roberts granted the administration a temporary administrative stay just hours before an injunction was set to halt aboveground work on the $400 million project.
That keeps construction moving while the Supreme Court considers Trump’s broader emergency request to pause the lower-court ruling during his appeal.
Don’t miss the stories that matter.
Get Sean’s breaking news alerts — free, direct to your inbox.
The ballroom is already about 65% complete, according to Solicitor General D. John Sauer, who argued that stopping work now would create serious security problems and unnecessary disruption.
🚨 BREAKING: Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts GREENLIGHTS President Trump continuing White House ballroom-military complex construction, STRIKING DOWN the activist judge’s block
LET’S GO!! 🔥
Roberts stepped in, did the right thing, as the case proceeds.
Now the full… pic.twitter.com/mGA1GFw90r
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) August 21, 2026
The administration says the project is part of a larger secure White House complex needed to protect Trump, senior officials and guests following recent assassination threats and plots.
Sauer called completion “absolutely required” and argued the courts should not freeze a project already moving rapidly toward the finish line.
Chief Justice John Roberts temporarily blocked an order that would have halted aboveground ballroom construction Friday night — keeping the project moving while the legal fight plays out.
The Trump administration says the $400 million project is already about 65% complete — a significant investment already deep into execution.
Solicitor General D. John Sauer argues completing the secure complex is necessary for presidential and national security — framing the project as a security imperative, not a luxury.
Roberts’ administrative stay does not decide whether Trump had legal authority to build without congressional approval — the merits of that question remain unresolved.
Two lower courts have sided with the National Trust for Historic Preservation, which argues the administration lacked congressional approval for such a sweeping alteration to the White House complex.
Roberts did not decide that larger legal fight Friday.
His order does something simpler — and immediately important for Trump:
The cranes keep moving.
This story — like the ballroom — is developing…
Work on Trump WH ballroom can continue, Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts rules https://t.co/BMVmS8tcE6 pic.twitter.com/aVp2qZq4LP
— New York Post (@nypost) August 21, 2026
![Hegseth Demands Fitness Requirements, Says 'Fat Troops' 'Not Who We Are' [WATCH]](https://teamredvictory.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Hegseth-Demands-Fitness-Requirements-Says-Fat-Troops-Not-Who-We-350x250.jpg)
