National Trust Sues to Stop Trump's Ballroom

[babylonsister]

https://politicalwire.com/2025/12/12/national-trust-sues-to-stop-trumps-ballroom/

National Trust Sues to Stop Trump’s Ballroom
December 12, 2025 at 11:43 am EST By Taegan Goddard

Washington Post: “Historic preservationists begged President Donald Trump in October not to rapidly demolish the White House’s East Wing annex for his ballroom project, urging him to wait for federal review panels and allow the public to weigh in.”

“Now a group charged by Congress with helping to preserve historic buildings is asking a judge to block construction until those reviews occur, arguing that the ongoing project is illegal and unconstitutional.”

[dweller]

1. Illegal and unconstitutional

Is the Pisswig’s MO

🤬



✌🏻

[Harker]

6. As is utterly tasteless.

[cbabe]

2. Also asbestos clean up.

[Farmer-Rick]

29. Yeah, that asbestos is now all over the white house

The next president will need to do a thorough cleaning of all the heating and A.C. system. Especially if they want to live for more than 10 years.

[cbabe]

30. I worry about the staff, groundskeepers, clerks, janitors. Not to mention politicos, visitors, foreign dignitaries.

Tourists walking by. All are at risk.

Maybe maha can order a clean up. (snark)

[Farmer-Rick]

32. Yeah, the staff and many others are in danger

And when they get Mesothelioma cancer, they will be filing lawsuit after lawsuit against what remains of the Trump estate. Because pedo Trump had no federal government approval to tear down the East wing, so his estate...he will be long dead, will be responsible.

[efhmc]

3. Too late.

[Maru Kitteh]

4. How do the people back and fund this fight before he simply

shutters the National Trust?

[KS Toronado]

5. That's how he operates, destroys anything that gets in his way.

Hopefully he'll be dead before construction starts. And even if it does get built, voters in 2028
will want it taken down and the East Wing restored.

[ToxMarz]

8. He doesn't wait for things to get in his way

He intentionally charts a course that causes as much damage and chaos as he can.

[maxsolomon]

22. Construction has started.

According to MFer, they're shoring and excavating.

[NJCher]

39. So?

We see building construction halted around here all the time because of permit violations or even lack of permits.

[maxsolomon]

42. The Federal Govt permits itself in DC

Whatever permit they need, they've already got. Likely they have a shoring and excavation permit at this stage.

[NJCher]

43. you're obviously not up to speed on this issue

do some research.

[maxsolomon]

44. I'm not retired with nothing but time on my hands.

I have read multiple articles on this ballroom, none of which clearly stated who issues permits for projects in DC on Federal Property. I thought I read that the City of DC is not the permitting authority, that the Federal Govt permits itself.

If you have "done some research", maybe tell me specifically who the AHJ is, what permits have or have not been applied for or acquired.

[NJCher]

46. check videos on court decisions

eom

[maxsolomon]

47. I don't watch videos

eom

[NJCher]

48. ok, well if you

refuse to be informed, kindly stop posting misinformation.

[maxsolomon]

49. By this time, you could easily have told me what I wrote that was "misinformation".

But instead, you want me to spend X time searching for and watching random videos on the intertubes that may or may not be accurate, either.

We're done, permanently.

"eom"

[ShazzieB]

17. I'd like to see him try.

From Wikipedia:

The National Trust for Historic Preservation is a privately funded, nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., that works in the field of historic preservation in the United States. The member-supported organization was founded in 1949 by congressional charter to support the preservation of America’s diverse historic buildings, neighborhoods, and heritage through its programs, resources, and advocacy.

[Maru Kitteh]

21. He'll likely declare they have no authority then. Just ignore them as he is now.

As evidenced by the bulldozed East Wing.

[ShazzieB]

35. He can and will declare anything he wants.

The courts will decide whether the National Trust has standing to sue over this and whether they have a case. And court cases can drag on for a long time, as ae all know.

If he loses and then appeals all the way up to the Supreme Court, there's no telling what the super majority might decide. But he may well be dead before it gets that far. In the meantime, if this puts the brakes on his ability to build anything even temporarily, that will be a good thing. It'll buy time, and the longer his construction efforts are stalled, the more likely they will never come to fruition.

[rampartd]

40. the courts can decide anything reasonalbe

he will simply drag out the process or rush it to his pet justices for a shadow docket .

[ShazzieB]

41. Yes, I acknowledged in the post that we can't count on SCOTUS.

But as I also pointed out, court cases can drag out for a v-e-r-y long time. With any luck, he'll be barred from building anything while the law suit is tied up in litigation, and in the meantime he'll either croak or his time in office will run out. That's what I'm hoping for.

Of course, we all know how little regard he has for things like court orders, but he can't build a ballroom all by himself.Reputable architects and building contractors aren't going to be willing to cheerfully break the law for him.

And don't forget: the midterms are coming up in less thah 11 months. After 1/1/2027, he likely won't have control of the House, and if so, impeachment will proceed apace. The Senate will be a wild card, but that's a bridge that can be crossed when the country comes to it. Considering what's going to happen to the economy next year, he may be the most hated man in Washington before long.

The key is that this lawsuit has the potential to create delays. And every delay increases the probability that he won't be able to build this thing,

[KS Toronado]

25. Thanks for that Shaz, so he can't fire them.

[SergeStorms]

27. He'll bomb them.

"Enemies of the state," and all of his usual horse shit.

[ShazzieB]

36. Exactly!

He can't fire them, and he also can't defund them, because they privately funded. He can throw all tne tantrums he wants, but they won't get him anywhere!

I love the idea of him being faced with an adversary that he is powerless to make disappear.

[Trueblue1968]

7. We do not want his stinking ball room. Trump is full of dog poop !!!!!!!!

[in2herbs]

10. Now that it's torn down I would like it rebuilt as a permanent place for the public, a place where the trials for the

f45 regime and the 6 on the USSC will be held, with pictures of all these traitors will hang forever in shame, a place where the public can watch future USSC hearings, etc.

[Trueblue1968]

38. I would never go for that. Go for beauty, a positive building we would be proud to take tours in etc

[in2herbs]

9. So who is suing the contractors that ripped the East Wing apart? nt

[Maru Kitteh]

11. And why were they not arrested.

[Farmer-Rick]

33. Their licenses for handling asbestos had expired

They weren't authorized to handle asbestos evaluation and removal. That alone should bankrupt them when people start getting diagnosed with Mesothelioma.

[cbabe]

31. Go after their insurance companies. And licenses.

[ShazamIam]

12. I know it is impossible but I wish he could be sued and forced to rebuild the East Wing. nt

[dalton99a]

13. Fucking criminal

“No president is legally allowed to tear down portions of the White House without any review whatsoever — not President Trump, not President Biden, and not anyone else,” the suit states. “And no president is legally allowed to construct a ballroom on public property without giving the public the opportunity to weigh in.”

The White House has maintained that the grounds are exempt from the National Historical Preservation Act, but lawyers for the National Trust for Historic Preservation, an organization chartered by Congress to preserve America’s historic buildings, argue Mr. Trump is violating other sections of U.S. Code.

The suit points to a section of federal law that states, “A building or structure shall not be erected on any reservation, park or public grounds of the federal government in the District of Columbia without express authority of Congress.”

https://www.nytimes.com/live/2025/12/12/us/trump-news#trump-white-house-ballroom-lawsuit-national-trust

[Martin68]

14. It's about time. What Trump has done is an abomination. It's not his house. Why did it take so long?

He already tore down the East Wing and paved the Rose Garden.

[RockCreek]

15. Exactly!!

And is the cost of repair and remediation of damage to date, as well as cost of rebuilding according to historic standards part of the suit?

[ShazzieB]

16. GOOD!

Last edited Sat Dec 13, 2025, 12:45 AM - Edit history (1)

If nothing else, this could slow things down long enough to keep anything from getting built before he leaves office, feet first on a stretcher, or otherwise.

[Dave Bowman]

18. There should be class action lawsuits frome hell for all the horrible things he did.

[electric_blue68]

19. Tearing down the East Wing was So shocking...just like that gone!

While policies destroying people, places etc are worse, this is still horrible. It's our house, so to speak. That's why they have an official group to oversee changes.
I don't think the official group would have allowed this - which why the bastard went ahead with it.

And paving over the Rose Garden was nasty, and ugly.

[Jimvanhise]

20. IT IS ALREADY ILLEGAL

Trump had workers ignore building regulations to tear it down, including testing for asbestos. Those who know about such things have already said the next administration will be forced to tear it down and start all over. But Trump doesn't believe in laws.

[yellowcanine]

23. THANK YOU NATIONAL HISTORIC TRUST!

About time someone calls the orange shit gibbon to account!

[MissouriDem47]

24. TACO should have to pay to get it restored.

TACO should have to pay for it to be restored, not contributors but straight out his pocket. Garnish his wages if necessary.

[newdeal2]

26. Sell his crappy Florida property

The construction firms should also be held responsible in the future. No more government work for them.

[cstanleytech]

28. Trump's probably planning on turning it into a throne room for himself.

[Farmer-Rick]

34. I was figuring he would just go back to sex trafficking

Since he knows how to make money off it and he doesn't have Epstein as competition anymore. That huge ballroom would be a great place to cage up some underage girls.

[cstanleytech]

37. Sex trafficking? Here I just thought he was involved in just sampling.

[AKwannabe]

45. This whole GD administration is

Illegal and unconstitutional!!!!