Construction of the underground and above ground portions of President Donald Trump's White House ballroom project will be allowed to continue, a US appeals court said.
The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia granted an administrative stay after the Trump administration appealed against US District Judge Richard Leon's decision to halt above ground construction on Thursday.
Construction is now expected to continue until the next hearing, due on 5 June.
This week's rulings came after the appeals court ordered the judge to reconsider the national security implications of halting the work, following his temporary block of all construction in March.
The ruling marks a victory for the president in his effort to redesign the storied American structure. Leon stated on Thursday that he thought the project required congressional approval and that the administration reclassifying the ballroom plans as vital for national security appeared to be an attempted workaround.
Trump took to Truth Social to accuse the judge of attempting to prevent future Presidents and World Leaders from having a safe and secure large scale Meeting Place. He emphasized that the underground complex would include bomb shelters and medical facilities.
The Justice Department has argued that halting the construction would jeopardize national security. The initial halt to construction followed a lawsuit from the National Trust for Historic Preservation, claiming legal violations regarding the lack of approval and consultation before the project's start.
Construction has continued on the project, which began after the demolition of the White House East Wing and is expected to be funded by private donors with an overall estimated cost of $400 million.
