Overview
- Judge Richard Leon ordered construction paused Tuesday, freezing work on President Trump's planned reception hall at the White House.
- The ruling granted a suit by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, a congressionally chartered nonprofit that said the project skipped required reviews and lacked authorization from Congress.
- Leon wrote that the president is a steward, not an owner, and said the project could resume only with explicit approval from Congress.
- Plans called for a venue for up to 1,000 guests after a White House wing was bulldozed, with reports placing the privately funded budget between $200 million and $400 million.
- The White House has two weeks to appeal, and Trump attacked the preservation group on Truth Social while defending the project as costing taxpayers nothing.