An emergency Supreme Court request seeks to keep work moving on Trump’s White House project after an appeals court said congressional approval is required.
Trump now frames the 90,000-square-foot ballroom chiefly as a national-security build, saying it will sit above a military complex with anti-drone protections and bullet-resistant features.
Cost estimates have widened sharply: Trump said private donors would cover up to $400 million, but contractor documents cited by the Washington Post put the total near $600 million, with taxpayers funding more than half.
The underground facility would replace the World War II-era Presidential Emergency Operations Center beneath the East Wing, a bunker used during crises including Sept. 11 and the 2020 White House protests.
Chief Justice John Roberts already issued a temporary stay allowing above-ground construction to continue, while the broader fight tests presidential authority over White House grounds versus Congress’s control of federal property.