Overview
Congressionally-chartered nonprofit (1949) dedicated to historic preservation in the United States. Filed suit in December 2025 against the White House Ballroom Project, arguing the Constitution and federal statutes require congressional authorization for new construction on White House grounds — none has been given. Refused a DOJ request on April 26, 2026 to drop the suit “in light of last night’s extraordinary events” (the White House Correspondents’ Dinner Shooting 2026).
Key Facts
- Filed suit December 2025, a week after the East Wing demolition
- Counsel: Gregory Craig, former Obama White House Counsel
- Lower court blocked above-ground construction; D.C. Circuit (federal appeals court) allowed construction to proceed pending June 5, 2026 hearing
- Trust counsel response to DOJ’s drop-the-suit request: “What Saturday’s awful event does not change is that the Constitution and multiple federal statutes require Congress to authorize construction of a ballroom on White House grounds, and that Congress has not done so.”
Newsletter Relevance
Plaintiff in one of the cleanest pending Article-I-vs.-executive-overreach cases. The June 5 D.C. Circuit hearing is the next inflection point. The Trust’s refusal to drop the suit under DOJ pressure is itself a noteworthy data point in Crisis-As-Pretext coverage.
Connections
- White House Ballroom Project
- Gregory Craig — Trust counsel
- Department of Justice — sought voluntary dismissal
- East Wing — demolished, motivating the suit