USA17 August, 20262 min read
Donald Trump Accuses National Trust for Historic Preservation of Treason Over White House Military Complex
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Trump labels National Trust for Historic Preservation as treasonous for lawsuit over White House ballroom. He alleges disclosure exposed highly secret military secrets tied to White House security project.
5 outlets told this the same way.
Supreme Court Ballroom Fight
President Donald Trump accused the National Trust for Historic Preservation of revealing “top military secrets” as his administration pressed the U.S. Supreme Court over a White House ballroom addition and an underground “military complex.”
In a Truth Social post Friday night, Trump wrote that “These are the TREASONISTS that brought the suit against the Military Complex,” referring to the preservation group that brought the case blocking aboveground construction.
The Washington Post said an appeals court ordered officials to halt construction on the ballroom by Aug. 21 unless Congress authorizes the project, and it said the administration asked the Supreme Court to let it finish the controversial project.
The Washington Post also reported that Trump argued the ballroom and the underground complex are inseparable, writing, “The lower section does not work without the upper section and, likewise, the upper section does not work without the lower.”
Agencies Cite Threats
The Washington Post reported that leaders of the FBI, CIA, Secret Service and other agencies told the Supreme Court on Friday that the ballroom was needed to provide a secure meeting space for the president and other leaders.
It said the administration’s argument referenced threats from Iran and potential drone attacks, and it quoted Army Secretary Daniel P. Driscoll’s affidavit saying the ballroom would be a “sacrificial outer cover” to protect the people and military complex underneath.
Newsweek said the administration’s Supreme Court filing described extensive security features, including bomb shelters, sniper positions, missile-resistant construction, and facilities extending five stories underground.
Newsweek also reported that the administration asked the Supreme Court for a decision before the injunction is scheduled to take effect on August 21, and it said the trust urged the justices to deny the requested stay.
Trust, Funding, and Stakes
In a separate Truth Social post, Trump accused a U.S. agency and its former director of “treason” in connection with what he described as “highly secret military secrets” related to a security project near the White House. The Arabic-language report said Trump directed his accusations at the National Trust for Historic Preservation and claimed the U.S. government halted funding in 2005 over disagreements about its mission and objectives.
“These are the traitors who filed the lawsuit against the military complex. They exposed highly secret military secrets!”
The Washington Post reported that Democrats, preservationists and other critics of the ballroom said arguments over the president’s security should remain separate from questions about whether Trump had the authority to demolish the East Wing, solicit hundreds of millions of dollars in private donations, and begin building a 90,000-square-foot ballroom addition without getting approval from Congress. It also said the National Trust for Historic Preservation, a nonprofit that sued to stop ballroom construction, stated that “Ballroom construction must stop” while underground bunker construction can continue.