U.S. Justice Department Seeks Lift Of Injunction Blocking Trump White House Ballroom After Shooting

The U.S. Justice Department asked a federal judge to lift an injunction blocking progress on President Donald Trump’s White House ballroom project after a shooting near the White House on Saturday.

In a five-page court filing on Sunday, the DOJ said the incident showed an urgent need for improved security and asked that the lawsuit challenging the project be dismissed.

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The filing was addressed to U.S. District Judge Richard Leon, who ruled in April that Trump lacked legal authority to build the ballroom without congressional approval and issued an injunction halting “above-ground construction of the planned ballroom.”

The appeals court put Leon’s injunction on hold, and construction has continued while the case moves forward.

The Justice Department’s request followed a prior effort to dissolve Leon’s injunction and throw out the lawsuit after a foiled attack at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner in April.

The DOJ filing argued that Saturday’s incident underscored the need for “top level, state of the art security at the White House, including the ballroom,” and said it was vital for national security.

In the same filing, Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward wrote that the lawsuit is “a complete embarrassment to our Country,” and the submission included a quote that called the case “This is a terrible, tremendously harmful case to the United States of America, and all it stands for!”

ABC News

ABC News reported that the Secret Service said officers shot and killed an armed man who opened fire at a White House checkpoint Saturday evening, and it said a bystander was also struck by gunfire.

ABC News also reported the suspect was identified as Nasire Best, 21, of Dundalk, Maryland, according to Washington, D.C.'s Metropolitan Police Department.

The DOJ filing described planned security features for the ballroom, including a “SAFE HAVEN” from attackers such as the one last night and on April 25th, when an alleged gunman tried to storm the White House Correspondents' Association dinner.

The case is set for oral arguments before an appeals court panel on June 5, where three judges of the D.C. Circuit will weigh Leon’s late March injunction against the ballroom’s above-ground construction.

The DOJ and the National Trust for Historic Preservation prepared for the June 5 arguments after Leon’s order was temporarily stayed by the appeals judges, allowing work to continue.

The National Trust for Historic Preservation, described as a congressionally chartered nonprofit organization, said it would not drop its lawsuit after the April attack despite the Justice Department’s request.

In the DOJ’s Sunday night filing, the department said it was “forced” to reveal security details “to stave off the Court's dangerous injunction,” and it argued that without the facility, events would be exposed on the White House South Lawn.

The DOJ’s filing also tied the ballroom project to the administration’s broader security posture, saying the planned facility would protect the White House and the entire Washington, D.C. area, as a whole.