Overview
- The Justice Department, which filed its motion Monday evening, asked a federal judge to end the preliminary stop on construction of the East Wing ballroom.
- Government lawyers used unusually combative language in the filing and attacked the preservationist plaintiff as “FAKE” and afflicted by “Trump Derangement Syndrome.”
- Officials cite Saturday’s gala shooting in Washington, where security stopped a gunman and a security officer was wounded, and authorities accuse the suspect of attempting to murder President Trump.
- President Trump and acting Attorney General Todd Blanche say a new hall with bullet-resistant glass and secure medical and shelter space would have prevented the attack, though that claim is a political argument rather than a court finding.
- The project faces a preservation lawsuit over the demolition of the historic East Wing, and reporting says Republicans are drafting bills to authorize or fund the hall even as a new poll shows most voters oppose the teardown and doubt the safety rationale.