Trump cites national security reasons for refusing to stop East Wing construction

Stopping President Trump’s plans for a ballroom on the White House could disrupt the president’s security, the Secret Service told a federal judge Monday, but officials promised more transparency and approvals before construction gets too far along.

Government attorneys said the design of Mr. Trump’s ballroom is “still in progress,” so there is no plan to submit for approval to the relevant commissions.

The attorneys said the lawsuit is premature until that point.

In the meantime, since the old East Wing has been demolished, the contractor is rushing to install temporary security measures to protect the White House complex, Secret Service Deputy Director Matthew Quinn said. He said he couldn’t reveal them in open court but could tell the judge about those in a classified setting.

“Any pause in construction, even temporarily, would lead the contractor’s obligation unfulfilled in this regard and consequently hamper the Secret Service’s ability to meet its statutory obligations and protective mission,” he said.

The case is slated for an initial hearing Tuesday. The National Trust for Historic Preservation is asking a judge to issue a temporary restraining order shutting down construction. The trust said Mr. Trump’s vision of a massive building, dwarfing the rest of the complex, is “incompatible with its historic surroundings.”

The trust says the law required Mr. Trump, before commencing his project, to submit his plans to two federal commissions and Congress and to undergo an environmental review.

“The defendants have not only violated the law in many separate ways; they have also deprived the public of the critical opportunity to comment and provide input on perhaps the most substantial exterior alteration to the country’s most recognizable and historically significant building since it was reconstructed after being burned during the War of 1812,” Gregory Craig, an attorney for the trust, told the court in a filing requesting the restraining order.

Mr. Trump, a real estate developer, initially envisioned a 90,000-square-foot space. He has since said it will be “double the size” of his original plans, and he has enhanced the “quality of finishes and interiors.”

“It is actually under budget and ahead of schedule, as my jobs always are,” he said on social media on Dec. 6. “It’s just much bigger and more beautiful than originally planned.”

He said private donations are covering the costs, with “no taxpayer dollars involved.”

The trust said that doesn’t obviate the obligation to obtain approval when making changes to what it called “perhaps the most recognizable and historically significant building in the country.”

The East Wing, home to the first lady’s offices, was constructed in 1902, alongside the West Wing, which is where the Oval Office and executive offices are. It was expanded in 1942 with the addition of a bunker and a movie theater.

Outside the structure was a garden dating to 1903 and renamed after former first lady Jackie Kennedy in 1965. That, too, has been torn up by the construction.

The case has been assigned to Judge Richard Leon, a George W. Bush appointee.

Demolition was completed earlier this month.

Officials said in the new court filings that the underground work will continue for several months and above-grade work won’t start until April at the earliest.

Mr. Craig said the two commissions responsible for reviewing federal construction in the city are the National Capital Planning Commission and the Commission of Fine Arts.

Neither has seen any plans, the lawsuit said. Mr. Trump has dismissed all the members of the Fine Arts Commission, and that board stands empty.

The lawsuit says Congress also must approve any project on federal parkland in the city.

The trust asked that all construction be halted until Mr. Trump submits his plans to all relevant boards.

Mark Widerschein, the lead Justice Department attorney on Monday’s brief, said the plans are not final and the trust should wait to see them before objecting.

“Ultimately, depending upon the final configuration and architectural elements of the project, plaintiff may have different objections or no objections at all, which would eliminate the need for future judicial intervention altogether,” he said.

The National Park Service, which shares responsibility for the site, said the alternative to the ballroom space is to set up tents every time the White House hosts a large event.

Those events cause “substantial damage” to the grass, which must be repaired each time, said John Stanwich, the park service’s liaison to the White House.

He said historic items from the East Wing were preserved before the demolition, and a full 3D scan was performed to document the old building’s appearance.