President Donald Trump on Sunday demanded that a federal lawsuit blocking aspects of his planned White House ballroom be dropped, citing Saturday night's shooting outside the White House Correspondents' Association dinner as proof that presidential events must be moved onto secured grounds.
The project remains under court review, the suspect is in custody, and Trump has said construction of what he called a "Militarily Top Secret Ballroom" cannot proceed fast enough.
In a Truth Social post Sunday morning, Trump argued the attempted attack at the Washington Hilton demonstrated the need for a secure ballroom on White House grounds.
"What happened last night is exactly the reason that our great Military, Secret Service, Law Enforcement, and, for different reasons, every President for the last 150 years, have been DEMANDING that a large, safe, and secure Ballroom be built ON THE GROUNDS OF THE WHITE HOUSE," Trump said.
He argued that the planned structure has top-tier protective features.
"While beautiful, it has every highest level security feature there is plus, there are no rooms sitting on top for unsecured people to pour in, and is inside the gates of the most secure building in the World, The White House," he said.
Trump also took direct aim at the litigation.
He called it a "ridiculous Ballroom lawsuit, brought by a woman walking her dog, who has absolutely No Standing to bring such a suit," and said it "must be dropped, immediately."
He added that "Nothing should be allowed to interfere with its construction, which is on budget and substantially ahead of schedule."
The case was filed in December 2025 by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, a congressionally chartered nonprofit, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
The plaintiff Trump appeared to reference is Alison Hoagland, a National Trust board member and architectural historian who established standing by describing how the demolition of the East Wing and the new construction disrupts her walks and her view.
The trial judge found those harms sufficient to support an injunction.
The procedural posture is narrower than Trump's post suggested.
U.S. District Judge Richard Leon, a George W. Bush appointee, granted a preliminary injunction on March 31, finding the project likely required congressional authorization.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, in a 2-1 ruling on April 11, extended a stay of that injunction and remanded the case for the lower court to clarify a safety-and-security exception.
The shooting that prompted Trump's renewed push occurred Saturday night when a gunman, identified by federal authorities as Cole Tomas Allen, 31, of Torrance, California, charged a Secret Service checkpoint outside the ballroom carrying a shotgun, a handgun, and knives.
He exchanged fire with agents and was subdued. One agent was struck but was protected by a ballistic vest. Trump, the first lady, and Cabinet members were evacuated.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche told NBC's "Meet the Press" that preliminary findings indicate Allen was targeting administration officials.
Allen is expected to be arraigned Monday in federal court on two firearms counts and assault on a federal officer, with additional charges anticipated. The dinner was canceled and is expected to be rescheduled within 30 days.
Jim Thomas ✉
Jim Thomas is a writer based in Indiana. He holds a bachelor's degree in Political Science, a law degree from U.I.C. Law School, and has practiced law for more than 20 years.
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