DOJ Cites Nasire Best Shooting to Revive Trump White House Ballroom Project

On May 23, a 21-year-old man identified as Nasire Best of Maryland walked up to a Secret Service checkpoint near 17th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue and opened fire on officers, prompting Secret Service Police to return fire and strike him, after which officers took him to a hospital where he later died.

“DOJ filing invokes weekend White House shooting in ballroom case The Secret Service said a gunman fired at a White House checkpoint”

ABC News

The Justice Department used the weekend shooting as part of its effort to revive the White House ballroom project, arguing in a Sunday court filing that the incident underscored the need for “top level, state of the art security at the White House, including the Ballroom.”

ABC News

The administration also tied the renewed push to the April 25 White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner shooting, when Cole Tomas Allen was charged with attempting to assassinate President Donald Trump.

In the same legal fight over construction, Judge Leon had ruled that construction could not move forward without congressional approval, while the D.C. Circuit temporarily stayed that order, allowing work to continue until at least June 5.

Trump framed the May 23 shooting as evidence for a more secure White House, posting on Truth Social that the incident came exactly one month after the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner shooting and calling for “the most safe and secure space of its kind ever built in Washington, D.C.”

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche argued in a Sunday court filing that it was “urgent” for the ballroom to be completed, denouncing the lawsuit that paused construction and describing the May 23 checkpoint shooting as the second time in a month that Trump’s life had been threatened.

Blanche wrote, “This second attack on the President this month underscores the critical need for top level, state of the art security at the White House, including the Ballroom,” and said the ballroom “is being constructed to ensure that the President can perform his constitutional duties in a safe and heavily secured facility.”

Al Jazeera

Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward, in a Sunday court filing, warned that the injunction had “wrongfully cast a cloud of uncertainty around the future of the entire East Wing Project,” and argued the project was for the “physical safety and security of all Presidents, their families, staff, Foreign Dignitaries, and guests.”

Trump, meanwhile, continued to connect the shooting to the ballroom in his own messaging, writing on Truth Social that the event was “one month removed from the White House Correspondent’Dinner shooting [sic], and goes to show how important it is, for all future Presidents, to get, what will be, the most safe and secure space of its kind ever built in Washington, D.C.”

The legal fight centers on whether construction can proceed on the White House ballroom, with the D.C. Circuit temporarily staying Leon’s order while an appeals panel may hear oral arguments on June 5.

“Less than a month after federal prosecutors charged a man with attempting to assassinate President Donald Trump at the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner at the Washington Hilton, another shooting near the White House, this one fatal, has given Trump’s team a renewed push in its legal battle over the new $400 million White House ballroom project”

Dallas Express

The National Trust for Historic Preservation has declined to drop the suit, with President and CEO Carol Quillen saying the group “endangers no one and respectfully asks the Administration to follow the law,” while also thanking Secret Service and DC law enforcement for keeping the President and guests safe.

In court filings, the administration warned that if the ballroom construction could not go forward, future White House events would be “relegated to the vulnerable tents on the South Lawn,” exposed to threats “as again shown by last night’s shooting.”

The stakes also include the project’s funding and security scope, as Trump’s team has argued for lifting the injunction while Senate Republicans have debated adding $1 billion in security funding, and the DOJ has described the ballroom as a “SAFE HAVEN” from attackers such as the one on April 25.

Trump’s own statements have emphasized the security features and the project’s urgency, including his claim that the ballroom would be “the most safe and secure space of its kind ever built in Washington, D.C.”