{"id":148960,"date":"2026-04-16T15:57:57","date_gmt":"2026-04-16T23:57:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/2026\/04\/16\/judge-leon-to-trump-for-real-this-time-a-fancy-ballroom-is-not-a-national-security-necessity\/"},"modified":"2026-04-16T15:57:57","modified_gmt":"2026-04-16T23:57:57","slug":"judge-leon-to-trump-for-real-this-time-a-fancy-ballroom-is-not-a-national-security-necessity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/2026\/04\/16\/judge-leon-to-trump-for-real-this-time-a-fancy-ballroom-is-not-a-national-security-necessity\/","title":{"rendered":"Judge Leon To Trump: For Real This Time \u2014 A Fancy Ballroom Is Not A \u2018National Security Necessity\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

You know what they say about giving an inch. The Trump administration apparently took Judge Richard Leon\u2019s thoughtful national-security carve-out in his preliminary injunction order \u2014 the one that let construction continue only for genuine safety measures \u2014 and decided it meant the whole ballroom project could barrel along unimpeded. Judge Leon had a decidedly different take.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019ve been following along at home (and if you haven\u2019t, this saga\u00a0has been going on for months \u2014 Judge Leon was side-eyeing the government\u2019s constitutional theory back in January<\/a>), this is the case where the National Trust for Historic Preservation sued to stop Trump\u2019s $400 million White House ballroom \u2014 the one being built on the rubble of the demolished East Wing, with zero congressional authorization and a funding structure Leon once memorably called a \u201cRube Goldberg contraption.\u201d On March 31st,\u00a0Leon dropped his preliminary injunction<\/a>\u00a0and told the administration that, surprising no one who had been paying attention, presidents don\u2019t get to freestyle renovations<\/a> on national landmarks without an act of Congress.<\/p>\n

But Leon, cognizant of the genuine security complexities at any active White House construction site, included a safety-and-security exception. It was a reasonable gesture. The administration promptly tried to drive a 90,000-square-foot ballroom through it.<\/p>\n

This judge is having exactly zero of this nonsense, writing, \u201cIt is, to say the least, incredible, if not disingenuous, that Defendants now argue that my Order does not stop ballroom construction because of the safety-and-security exception!\u201d<\/p>\n

In today\u2019s opinion, available below, Leon clarified and amended his injunction \u2014 and he was not subtle about his irritation with the government\u2019s reading of his original order. Right out of the gate:<\/p>\n

\n

Defendants argue that the entire ballroom construction project, from tip to tail, falls within the safety-and-security exception and therefore may proceed unabated. That is neither a reasonable nor a correct reading of my Order!<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Gotta love a judge that is unafraid of the exclamation mark! This is a federal district judge \u2014 a George W. Bush appointee, lest we forget, not exactly a card-carrying member of the so-called \u201cResistance\u201d \u2014 using the rhetorical equivalent of a buzzer on the administration\u2019s argument.<\/p>\n

So what does the amended order actually do? Leon drew a clean line: above-ground construction of the proposed ballroom is stopped. Below-ground construction, including actual national security facilities like bunkers, bomb shelters, military installations, and medical facilities, can proceed. Construction necessary to protect the structural integrity of the White House, handle waterproofing, secure the site, and cover the underground elements can also move forward. What cannot move forward is the ballroom itself.<\/p>\n

This is where it gets really delicious for anyone who has been watching this case. The administration previously told the court that the below-ground and above-ground elements of the project were independent of each other. They said the underground work was \u201cdriven by national security concerns independent of the above-grade construction.\u201d They even assured the court the below-ground elements didn\u2019t \u201clock in\u201d the above-ground design. Leon quotes this back to them with what I can only describe as judicial relish.<\/p>\n

\n

Defendants\u2019 latest representations that \u201cthe entire project advances critical national-security objectives as an integrated whole\u201d are in direct conflict with Defendants\u2019 prior representations that the above-ground and below-ground portions of the project were \u201cindependent of\u201d one another.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Leon used the word \u201cbrazenly\u201d to describe the government\u2019s latest pivot. That\u2019s gotta sting. <\/p>\n

The administration also threw in the argument that security features like missile-resistant steel columns, drone-proof roofing, and bulletproof windows bring the whole above-ground structure within the security exception. Leon dispatched this efficiently, noting that those features are still months or years away from being installed \u2014 so any claim of \u201cirreparable harm\u201d from not having them right now is belied by the administration\u2019s own admission that the project won\u2019t be done until 2028.<\/p>\n

On the national security classified declarations \u2014 four of them \u2014 that the government submitted ex parte<\/em>? Leon reviewed all of them. They apparently shed no light on why an above-ground ballroom is a national security necessity. If the government had something classified and convincing, it didn\u2019t make it into those declarations.<\/p>\n

Judge Leon also has a line towards the end of the opinion that low key calls out a lot of Trump 2.0 justifications for doing whatever-the-fuck they want to do: \u201cnational security is not a blank check to proceed with otherwise unlawful activity.\u201d<\/p>\n

Say it louder for the people in the back. Leon notes that he has taken the national security concerns seriously throughout this case \u2014 which is why the exception exists in the first place \u2014 but judicial deference is not judicial abdication. He cites precedent standing for the proposition that deference applies \u201cso long as the government\u2019s declarations raise legitimate concerns,\u201d not as a magic incantation that ends all scrutiny.<\/p>\n

Leon also took a moment to note, with what I imagine was a certain weary exasperation, that he has \u201cno desire or intention to be dragooned into the role of construction manager.\u201d He never required the administration to get written pre-approval for individual construction decisions. The point of the opinion, he explains patiently, is simply to clarify that the injunction does, in fact, stop the ballroom. That this needs clarification at all says something.<\/p>\n

The DOJ has its appeal already pending at the D.C. Circuit, which previously remanded the case for exactly this clarification, so we\u2019ll see what the Circuit does now that Leon has given them what they asked for.<\/p>\n

gov.uscourts.dcd.287645.72.0_4<\/a>Download<\/a><\/div>\n
\n

\"\"Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, host of The Jabot podcast<\/a>, and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer<\/a>. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her<\/a> with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter @Kathryn1<\/a>\u00a0or Mastodon @Kathryn1@mastodon.social.<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The post Judge Leon To Trump: For Real This Time \u2014 A Fancy Ballroom Is Not A \u2018National Security Necessity\u2019<\/a> appeared first on Above the Law<\/a>.<\/p>\n

You know what they say about giving an inch. The Trump administration apparently took Judge Richard Leon\u2019s thoughtful national-security carve-out in his preliminary injunction order \u2014 the one that let construction continue only for genuine safety measures \u2014 and decided it meant the whole ballroom project could barrel along unimpeded. Judge Leon had a decidedly different take.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019ve been following along at home (and if you haven\u2019t, this saga\u00a0has been going on for months \u2014 Judge Leon was side-eyeing the government\u2019s constitutional theory back in January<\/a>), this is the case where the National Trust for Historic Preservation sued to stop Trump\u2019s $400 million White House ballroom \u2014 the one being built on the rubble of the demolished East Wing, with zero congressional authorization and a funding structure Leon once memorably called a \u201cRube Goldberg contraption.\u201d On March 31st,\u00a0Leon dropped his preliminary injunction<\/a>\u00a0and told the administration that, surprising no one who had been paying attention, presidents don\u2019t get to freestyle renovations<\/a> on national landmarks without an act of Congress.<\/p>\n

But Leon, cognizant of the genuine security complexities at any active White House construction site, included a safety-and-security exception. It was a reasonable gesture. The administration promptly tried to drive a 90,000-square-foot ballroom through it.<\/p>\n

This judge is having exactly zero of this nonsense, writing, \u201cIt is, to say the least, incredible, if not disingenuous, that Defendants now argue that my Order does not stop ballroom construction because of the safety-and-security exception!\u201d<\/p>\n

In today\u2019s opinion, available below, Leon clarified and amended his injunction \u2014 and he was not subtle about his irritation with the government\u2019s reading of his original order. Right out of the gate:<\/p>\n

\n

Defendants argue that the entire ballroom construction project, from tip to tail, falls within the safety-and-security exception and therefore may proceed unabated. That is neither a reasonable nor a correct reading of my Order!<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Gotta love a judge that is unafraid of the exclamation mark! This is a federal district judge \u2014 a George W. Bush appointee, lest we forget, not exactly a card-carrying member of the so-called \u201cResistance\u201d \u2014 using the rhetorical equivalent of a buzzer on the administration\u2019s argument.<\/p>\n

So what does the amended order actually do? Leon drew a clean line: above-ground construction of the proposed ballroom is stopped. Below-ground construction, including actual national security facilities like bunkers, bomb shelters, military installations, and medical facilities, can proceed. Construction necessary to protect the structural integrity of the White House, handle waterproofing, secure the site, and cover the underground elements can also move forward. What cannot move forward is the ballroom itself.<\/p>\n

This is where it gets really delicious for anyone who has been watching this case. The administration previously told the court that the below-ground and above-ground elements of the project were independent of each other. They said the underground work was \u201cdriven by national security concerns independent of the above-grade construction.\u201d They even assured the court the below-ground elements didn\u2019t \u201clock in\u201d the above-ground design. Leon quotes this back to them with what I can only describe as judicial relish.<\/p>\n

\n

Defendants\u2019 latest representations that \u201cthe entire project advances critical national-security objectives as an integrated whole\u201d are in direct conflict with Defendants\u2019 prior representations that the above-ground and below-ground portions of the project were \u201cindependent of\u201d one another.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Leon used the word \u201cbrazenly\u201d to describe the government\u2019s latest pivot. That\u2019s gotta sting. <\/p>\n

The administration also threw in the argument that security features like missile-resistant steel columns, drone-proof roofing, and bulletproof windows bring the whole above-ground structure within the security exception. Leon dispatched this efficiently, noting that those features are still months or years away from being installed \u2014 so any claim of \u201cirreparable harm\u201d from not having them right now is belied by the administration\u2019s own admission that the project won\u2019t be done until 2028.<\/p>\n

On the national security classified declarations \u2014 four of them \u2014 that the government submitted ex parte<\/em>? Leon reviewed all of them. They apparently shed no light on why an above-ground ballroom is a national security necessity. If the government had something classified and convincing, it didn\u2019t make it into those declarations.<\/p>\n

Judge Leon also has a line towards the end of the opinion that low key calls out a lot of Trump 2.0 justifications for doing whatever-the-fuck they want to do: \u201cnational security is not a blank check to proceed with otherwise unlawful activity.\u201d<\/p>\n

Say it louder for the people in the back. Leon notes that he has taken the national security concerns seriously throughout this case \u2014 which is why the exception exists in the first place \u2014 but judicial deference is not judicial abdication. He cites precedent standing for the proposition that deference applies \u201cso long as the government\u2019s declarations raise legitimate concerns,\u201d not as a magic incantation that ends all scrutiny.<\/p>\n

Leon also took a moment to note, with what I imagine was a certain weary exasperation, that he has \u201cno desire or intention to be dragooned into the role of construction manager.\u201d He never required the administration to get written pre-approval for individual construction decisions. The point of the opinion, he explains patiently, is simply to clarify that the injunction does, in fact, stop the ballroom. That this needs clarification at all says something.<\/p>\n

The DOJ has its appeal already pending at the D.C. Circuit, which previously remanded the case for exactly this clarification, so we\u2019ll see what the Circuit does now that Leon has given them what they asked for.<\/p>\n

gov.uscourts.dcd.287645.72.0_4<\/a>Download<\/a><\/div>\n
\n

\"\"Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, host of The Jabot podcast<\/a>, and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer<\/a>. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her<\/a> with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter @Kathryn1<\/a>\u00a0or Mastodon @Kathryn1@mastodon.social.<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The post Judge Leon To Trump: For Real This Time \u2014 A Fancy Ballroom Is Not A \u2018National Security Necessity\u2019<\/a> appeared first on Above the Law<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

You know what they say about giving an inch. The Trump administration apparently took Judge Richard Leon\u2019s thoughtful national-security carve-out in his preliminary injunction order \u2014 the one that let construction continue only for genuine safety measures \u2014 and decided it meant the whole ballroom project could barrel along unimpeded. Judge Leon had a decidedly […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":148961,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-148960","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-above_the_law"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/xira.com\/p\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_5243-1-scaled-e1623338814705-620x568-Ic0cbO.jpg?fit=620%2C568&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/148960","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=148960"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/148960\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/148961"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=148960"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=148960"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=148960"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}