Claim:
Construction on US President Donald Trump’s White House ballroom has been halted by a federal judge in mid-February 2026.
Rating:
Rating: False
Context:
As of this writing, a federal judge has yet to rule on the legal status of the construction project. In a social media post, Trump said the project is moving “ahead of schedule,” while a White House spokesman told us the project is still in the “demolition phase.”
A social media rumor that surfaced around February 10, 2026, alleged A federal judge has halted US President Donald Trump’s White House ballroom construction project.
Trump began the demolition of the East Wing of the White House in October 2025 to replace it with a 90,000-square-foot ballroom. In December 2025The nonprofit National Trust for Historic Preservation sued the administration, arguing that the project began without necessary approvals or congressional authority.
In mid-February 2026, numerous readers asked us to confirm whether a federal judge had halted construction of the ballroom. February 10th Facebook the post said:
Trump’s new White House ballroom and bunker has been struck down by a federal judge and the National Trust Committee. It was also discovered that the $400 million in ballroom donor money either disappeared or simply never existed. 🤔
The image of the White House (below) shows the former site of the East Wing, built in 1902 and renovated in 1942, completely demolished with several bulldozers and dump trucks clearing away the last of the rubble.
GSA must now hire a construction company to fill the east wing (trump was improperly demolished) with dirt and sod. The judge and the commission also ruled that Trump “cannot paint a wall in the white house without a permit and approval from the commission.”
(Facebook user Alex W. Weis)
As of this writing, U.S. District Judge Richard Leon, the judge overseeing the case, has yet to issue a decision on the status of the ballroom construction project. I arrived at the White House; a spokesperson told us that the ballroom has not yet been built and that the project is still in the “demolition stage.”
Therefore, we find the claim that a judge stopped construction to be false. We will update the story when the court issues a decision.
Photos on Getty Images showed construction cranes around the demolition site in late January 2026.
The National Trust argument that the project proceeded without authorization from Congress and with inadequate environmental assessments.
On 17 December 2025, Leon rejected the National Trust’s motion for a temporary restraining order on the project and temporary permit work to continue. The judge’s order noted that because the ballroom plans had not been finalized, there was no “imminent risk of irreparable aesthetic harm.”
Conformable argument filed by the Trump administration in January 2026, previous presidents have not needed congressional approval to conduct construction or renovations on White House grounds. The government also said that the above ground construction will not start until April 2026.
At the end of January 2026, Leon expressed his skepticism that the administration had the legal authority to tear down the East Wing and continue construction. However, he said he would make a decision in the coming weeks, probably in February 2026regarding the admission or not of a preliminary decision, which would stop the construction works during the case.
According to Bloomberg ReportLeon predicted the issue will also be appealed to a federal appeals court and eventually the Supreme Court. Conformable court records seen on February 12, Leon had issued no such ordinance.
The White House did not say how much money it raised or who the private donors are, instead pointing to Trump’s latest statement. On February 10, 2026, Trump POSTED on TruthSocial that the construction project “is on budget and ahead of schedule.” He also shared digital renderings of what the potential ballroom would look like.
On January 25, Trump POSTED that the project was privately financed and would cost between $300 and $400 million:
I am building, on top of everything I do, one of the largest and most beautiful ballrooms in the world with over $300 million of Great American Patriots and working closely with the United States Military and Secret Service from the start. This is a GIFT (ZERO taxpayer funding!) to the United States of America of $300 to $400 million (depending on the scale and quality of the interior finishes!) for much needed space. […]
In November 2025, the White House ISSUED a list of donors to the ballroom project that included charities, sports team owners, technology companies, media companies and billionaires. The Associated Press reported an additional corporation as well as an artificial intelligence chipmaker that also donated to the project. The administration did not disclose how much each donor contributed.
Snopes has covered numerous claims about the demolition of the East Wing and Trump’s plans for a White House ballroom.
Sources:
“A crane used in the ballroom construction hovers above the white…” Getty Images, 10 Feb. 2026, https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/crane-used-in-the-ballroom-construction-hovers-above-the-news-photo/2260298495. Accessed 12 February 2026.
“Cranes and a temporary visitor entrance are seen on the north side of…” Getty Images, 28 Jan. 2026, https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/cranes-and-a-temporary-visitor-entrance-is-seen-on-the-news-photo/2257847734. Accessed 12 February 2026.
Esposito, Joey. “15 Claims We Investigated About White House East Wing Demolition”. Snopes, 26 Nov. 2025, https://www.snopes.com//collections/white-house-demolition-collection/. Accessed 12 February 2026.
Judge questions Trump’s authority to build a White House ballroom. 23 Jan. 2026, https://news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/judge-questions-trump-authority-to-build-white-house-ballroom. Accessed 12 February 2026.
“UNITED STATES NATIONAL TRUST FOR HISTORIC PRESERVATION v. NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, 1:25-Cv-04316 – CourtListener.Com”. CourtListener, https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72028010/national-trust-for-historic-preservation-in-the-united-states-v-national/. Accessed 12 February 2026.
National Trust for Historic Preservation in the United States v. National Park Service 1:25-Cv-04316 (DDC) | Clearing House for Civil Rights Litigation. https://clearinghouse.net/case/47494/. Accessed 12 February 2026.
RascouĂ«t-Paz, Anna. “Did Trump demolish the entire East Wing of the White House?” Snopes, 23 Oct. 2025, https://www.snopes.com//fact-check/trump-east-wing-white-house/. Accessed 12 February 2026.
Scarcella, Mike. “White House Faces Skeptical Judge in Trump Ballroom Trial”. Reuters, 23 January 2026. Litigation. www.reuters.com, https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/us-judge-weighs-bid-halt-trumps-white-house-ballroom-2026-01-22/. Accessed 12 February 2026.
“Supplemental Memorandum – # 30 in NATIONAL TRUST FOR HISTORIC PRESERVATION IN THE UNITED STATES v. NATIONAL PARK SERVICE (DDC, 1:25-Cv-04316) – CourtListener.Com.” CourtListener, https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72028010/30/national-trust-for-historic-preservation-in-the-united-states-v-national/. Accessed 12 February 2026.
“These are the 37 donors helping pay for Trump’s $300 million White House ballroom.” AP News, 12 Nov. 2025, https://apnews.com/article/donors-to-trump-white-house-ballroom-d4dd174eeb30ac244354a5a25551a86b. Accessed 12 February 2026.