President Donald Trump’s enormous White House ballroom project has been ordered to stop after a federal appeals court ruled that no president has the power to demolish and reconstruct major portions of the nation’s most famous public residence without Congress.

The divided decision delivered a dramatic setback to Trump’s plan for a sprawling 90,000-square-foot ballroom and security complex, a project that could reportedly cost as much as $600 million.

More than a construction dispute, the ruling became a forceful declaration about who ultimately controls the White House.

Not its temporary occupant, the judges concluded.

Congress—and by extension, the American people.

“Congress has exclusive authority to regulate the construction and demolition of White House structures,” Judges Patricia Millett and Bradley Garcia wrote in the majority opinion.

The two judges, appointed by Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden, said they were aware of no comparable episode in American history.

“We are aware of no instance in American history in which a President unilaterally and using privately collected funds demolished substantial portions of the White House that Congress authorized to be built and American taxpayers paid for. Until now,” they wrote.

Their language cut directly at the central claim behind Trump’s project: that the president can make extensive improvements to the executive residence without first receiving lawmakers’ approval.

The Constitution’s Property Clause gives Congress broad authority over property belonging to the United States, the majority found. That includes the White House—a residence occupied by one president at a time but owned by the nation.

“Congress has not ceded unfettered authority to the Executive Branch to dramatically redesign, reshape, and reconstruct the White House—the People’s House—to fit a particular President’s desires,” the judges wrote.

The legal battle began after workers demolished the historic East Wing to prepare for the new complex. The National Trust for Historic Preservation sued, arguing that Trump and the National Park Service lacked authority to destroy the structure or build its replacement without congressional approval.

Senior U.S. District Judge Richard Leon, a George W. Bush appointee, previously paused significant parts of the construction while permitting some underground work to continue.

Friday’s appellate decision reinforced the blockade, leaving cranes, equipment and an enormous construction site hanging in uncertainty beside the executive mansion.

Trump-appointed Judge Neomi Rao dissented.

Rao argued that the National Trust lacked legal standing to challenge the project and that the ballroom likely fell within the president’s authority to improve the executive residence.

She accused the lower court of elevating “the aesthetic displeasure of a single passerby” over the government’s security concerns. Rao also warned that leaving the site unfinished could create risks at the president’s home and workplace.

Trump seized on that argument almost immediately.

In an angry Truth Social post, he announced that he would appeal the ruling to the Supreme Court and described the decision as politically motivated, unlawful and dangerous.

“The Military and Secret Service are viewing this horrendous, politically motivated, and unlawful ruling as a National Security threat to our Nation,” Trump wrote.

He argued that the complex was designed to protect future presidents, their families, visiting dignitaries and members of the public. Trump also claimed that halting construction could jeopardize people working at and visiting the White House.

The administration has increasingly described the project as more than a ballroom. Trump has promoted enhanced security features and a proposed rooftop “drone port,” presenting the structure as both an entertainment venue and a military-security complex.

The majority’s ruling did not resolve whether such features might be desirable. Instead, it addressed who has the constitutional authority to approve their construction.

That distinction is now at the center of the case.

Trump says the presidency requires flexibility to renovate and secure the executive residence. The National Trust argues that allowing a president to demolish historic structures with privately raised money would effectively place the White House beyond meaningful public oversight.

The enormous potential price tag has intensified the controversy. Early descriptions placed the project at about $400 million, but reports have suggested the final cost could exceed $600 million, with questions remaining about how much could ultimately fall on taxpayers.

The East Wing has already been bulldozed. That means even if Trump ultimately loses, the historic structure at the center of the original dispute cannot simply be restored by reversing a court order.

The physical transformation has begun; the legal authority behind it remains unresolved.

The Supreme Court may now decide whether to intervene. Until then, the appeals court’s order represents an extraordinary rebuke of presidential power.

Trump envisioned a monumental ballroom that would reshape the White House for generations.

Instead, the unfinished site has become a monument to a very different principle: presidents may occupy the People’s House—but they do not own it.