Judge mocks White House East Wing ‘alteration’ as a ‘brazen interpretation of the laws of vocabulary’

By Devan Cole, Betsy Klein, CNN

(CNN) — The Trump administration’s arguments in defense of the massive White House ballroom project on Tuesday found virtually no purchase before a federal judge, who appears ready to rule that the president skirted the law by undertaking construction without congressional approval.

During a testy hearing before senior US District Judge Richard Leon, the George W. Bush appointee repeatedly threw cold water on a litany of arguments pushed by the Justice Department that President Donald Trump had authority under a series of federal laws to pursue the project absent express authorization from lawmakers.

Leon has made clear his doubt that Trump has the authority to move forward with the project under a federal law that gives a president the authority to “to undertake ‘alteration’ and ‘improvement’ of the White House, ‘as the President may determine.’”

He took issue on Tuesday with the idea that a sprawling $400 million ballroom renovation and the demolition of the East Wing marked a simple “alteration.”

Calling the project “an alteration,” Leon said, “takes some brazen interpretation of the laws of vocabulary.”

He also took aim at an argument that the White House falls under the National Park Service’s authority and that the Park Service has approved the project.

“This isn’t any national park,” Leon said. “This is an iconic symbol of this nation.”

The legal wrangling Tuesday at the federal courthouse in downtown Washington, DC, represented the latest dramatic episode in the case, unfolding several weeks after Leon rejected earlier arguments pushed by the National Trust for Historic Preservation in a highly technical ruling that allowed them to come back to him with different legal claims.

How he rules now could prove extremely consequential: The group is asking the judge for an order that would block any more construction at the site of where the East Wing once stood pending congressional approval. Leon said he would plan to issue his decision by the end of March, while also noting that an appeal by the losing side was likely. The Trump administration has suggested that above-ground work on the ballroom could begin as soon as April.

“It would have been a heck of a lot easier by any standard to have just gone to Congress to get the authority to do it,” Leon said at one point as he scolded the government for pushing “shifting theories and shifting dynamics” in the case, which was brought last year by the nation’s top historic preservation group.

“They’re looking for an escape hatch, it seems,” the judge said, referring to the government’s argument that the group lacked the legal right – known as “standing” – to challenge Trump’s project at all. Leon appeared to be pointing to a bid by some litigants to get a case tossed out on procedural grounds when their underlying arguments are likely to fall flat.

Leon seemed even more troubled by the Justice Department’s assertion that the project was now being completely managed by the National Park Service, which would subject it to federal rulemaking laws and therefore make its conduct reviewable by federal courts.

In his ruling last month, the judge said he couldn’t grant the Trust’s request to block the project because, at the time, the administration claimed the project was being handled by a little-known office within the White House. That office, he decided, is not subject to that same rulemaking law. But the Park Service’s apparent role in overseeing the project, Leon intimated Tuesday, severely undercut their argument that the Trust could not go to court to block it.

“Who is directing this project?” Leon asked at one point, raising his voice. “You can’t have it both ways.”

Yaakov Roth, a Justice Department lawyer, said the White House Executive Residence was “directing 100%” of the project and that the Park Service’s role was specific to funding.

Trump, a former real estate developer, has been personally involved in ballroom details, from floor plans to marble selection. The ballroom project has an estimated size of approximately 89,000 square feet, according to lead architect Shalom Baranes. By contrast, the primary White House structure, the Executive Mansion, is just 55,000 square feet.

Trump has maintained that the project isn’t subject to any oversight and that he should be able to continue with it without any serious scrutiny. He has promised it will be complete in the summer of 2028, months before he leaves office.

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