US judge halts Trump’s $400 million White House ballroom project for now

A U.S. judge blocked Donald Trump on Tuesday from proceeding with construction of a $400 million ballroom on the site of the White House’s demolished East Wing, halting ​for now one of the Republican president’s most visible efforts to reshape ‌the seat of American power.

U.S. District Judge Richard Leon in Washington granted a request for a preliminary injunction by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, a nonprofit organization that brought a lawsuit alleging Trump exceeded his authority ​when he razed the historic East Wing and launched construction without approval from ​Congress.

The decision by Leon, an appointee of Republican President George W. Bush, keeps ⁠the 90,000-square-foot ballroom project on hold while the lawsuit continues…