A Virginia couple is suing to stop Trump’s $300 million White House ballroom, calling it unlawful and historically reckless.

Donald Trump is facing legal action over the demolition of the White House’s East Wing, part of a $300 million plan to build a new ballroom on the executive grounds.

A Virginia couple, Charles and Judith Voorhees, filed an emergency motion in federal court on October 23 seeking to halt the project, alleging that it violates multiple federal preservation and planning laws.

  • Bustedknuckles@lemmy.world
    215·
    4 months ago

    Good. The demolition is disgusting, and apparently illegal. If legal efforts don’t lan out, the couple can send their son, Jason, to scare the courts

  • UnculturedSwine@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
    209·
    4 months ago

    I still can’t get over how cartoonishly evil trump is. Dude is literally destroying the white house and tweeting AI videos of himself shitting on the US flag, the Constitution, and the American people. He is literally destroying our culture and heritage and he hasn’t even finished with his first year in his new admin. He isn’t the antichrist. He’s the devil made flesh.

    • slaneesh_is_right@lemmy.orgEnglish
      951·
      4 months ago

      I love how cartoonishly evil, dumb and uncharismatic he is, and americans were like: “let’s see what he has to offer a second time.”

      History lesson in the future has to be absolute wild. People will imagine some well spoken George Clooney like person and then they see a video of Krang talking about grabbing pussy.

      • funkless_eck@sh.itjust.works
        17·
        4 months ago

        Honestly though I do only feel I learned how dumb and ridiculous and drug-fuelled and self-destroying the Nazis were after I left school. History class took them much more seriously than people did at the time.

        • Seth Taylor@lemmy.world
          6·
          4 months ago

          Yep. I absolutely hate how Hitler is portrayed. He’s always made to look scary. Trump isn’t scary by any stretch of the imagination. That’s why so many people missed the similarities. Trump/Hitler are just unstable. History should teach Hitler as unstable, not fearsome. Apparently there’s a trend with young men to develop some kind of admiration for Hitler precisely because of how “tough” he’s made to look in history class. Absolutely appalling.

      • tibi@lemmy.world
        1·
        4 months ago

        Last time absolute morons had absolute power got us 2 world wars that cost millions of lives. But sure, let’s do it again, it will be different™ this time.

  • Atelopus-zeteki@fedia.io
    1041·
    4 months ago

    We should make this a class action suit. Every patriotic / matriotic US citizen should sign on. We all have cause, we all have been harmed. If any of us tried to destroy a historic building, or modify it in any way with out a plan, with out approval from a host of government entities we would have been stopped on the very first day. FTS!

    “The defendants are listed as Trump, in his official capacity, and Jessica Brown, director of the National Park Service.” Excellent, J. Brown is not protected by SCOTUS. Go after the little fish. Charge the company doing the work, the guy running the backhoe, and everyone involved in this active destruction of The People’s House.

    • Typhoon@lemmy.ca
      61·
      4 months ago

      I’d be up to join the class action suit. As a Canadian it’s our right to be the ones to demolish the Whitehouse.

    • sudo@lemmy.today
      6·
      4 months ago

      Are we sure the people doing the work aren’t slave labor that just weren’t yet human trafficked?

      • Tarquinn2049@lemmy.world
        4·
        4 months ago

        I think they only retroactively count as slave labour after the bill makes it to trumps hands, and promptly into his toilet…

  • crystalmerchant@lemmy.world
    62·
    4 months ago

    Well, the East Wing is demolished now. Just goes to show you how effective all this hand wringing is. You have to stop him, forcibly.

    Once the building is a pile of rubble, he can just point at the pile of rubble and say well now we got to rebuild it I guess, oh and by the way I’m the one who gets to pick how it’s rebuilt. Ironic this is not a bad metaphor for the state of the country.

  • FreshParsnip@lemmy.ca
    39·
    4 months ago

    He should be arrested for vandalism.

    Wouldn’t it be hilarious if this is the thing that gets him removed from office? Wishful thinking, I know

    • altphoto@lemmy.today
      15·
      4 months ago

      A guy spray paints his favorite words under a bridge so he gets 10 years. Orange guy demolishes the most iconic building in the nation… down to the ground… Jail? Nope, presidential!

      • Strider@lemmy.world
        9·
        4 months ago

        Don’t forget about rape and the other crimes.

        But you be hardworking, you’ll make it for sure!

        • Seth Taylor@lemmy.world
          6·
          4 months ago

          This dude has committed so many crimes I’ve lost count. I’m stuck looking stupid when people ask me why I call him a criminal. I just stand there like an idiot like “The stuff… with the things… all of it.”

          • Strider@lemmy.world
            2·
            4 months ago

            Yeah it’s always infuriating if one needs to do that. It’s like people willingly ignore it.

    • Almacca@aussie.zoneEnglish
      101·
      4 months ago

      He should be arrested for vandalism.

      … and about ten thousand other things. No-one seems to give enough of a shit.

  • Furbag@lemmy.world
    37·
    4 months ago

    A nice gesture from some patriotic people, I’m sure, but we all know that laws meant to hold powerful people accountable for their actions are now meaningless.

    I expect that if this suit does not get outright dismissed, a Trump-appointed circuit judge or the SCOTUS will swoop in to save Trump yet again.

    • null_dot@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
      12·
      4 months ago

      You’re right, but I think this falls into the “don’t obey in advance” rule of resistance to autocracy.

      I’ve long since lost the will to support this type of action, like yourself I suppose. Everything is fucked all the way down. You can’t not-lose in a corrupt court system.

      However, I think it’s important that every authoritarian action is challenged, because if you don’t challenge then you really are kind of obeying in advance.

  • BarneyPiccolo@lemmy.today
    371·
    4 months ago

    There should be a class-action lawsuit against him personally on behalf of the entire population of the United States. Force him to pay out of his pocket to return the site to its previous glory, then pay punitive damages to every single citizen of the United States…all out of his own pocket.

    And make him sign each individual check, like in The Jerk. He loves to sign his name, this would make him HATE it.

    • CharlesDarwin@lemmy.worldEnglish
      5·
      4 months ago

      I think the majority of the country should have a class action suit against him for all the stress he’s caused over 10 years. His shitty 20-25% of hardcore fans can maybe have their taxes bumped up to cover it.

      Given that the new model is just to pull numbers right out of our ass, apparently, from watching the pedo-in-chief, I think each of us is due about 250 million dollars.

    • doingthestuff@lemy.lolEnglish
      3·
      4 months ago

      The WH answer to this is that there’s precedent for them not needing permits for demo, but building the new construction requires permits. Although they could say anything, how many people really know?

  • TheReanuKeeves@lemmy.world
    26·
    4 months ago

    I feel like Trump is setting a record for the most sued president while in office. And probably outside of office too.

  • mycodesucks@lemmy.world
    20·
    4 months ago

    Trump: Does horrible thing

    Two weeks after it matters: People: Sue over horrible thing

    One year later: Court: Trump shouldn’t have done that horrible thing.

    Result: Horrible thing is done. No consequences for having done said horrible thing. Lawyers get paid. Courts give themselves pat on back. Democracy manifest!

  • asg101@lemmy.blahaj.zoneEnglish
    222·
    4 months ago

    Has anyone else heard that tRump is planning to bury the Epstein Files in the foundation of the Epstein Ballroom?

  • oyo@lemmy.zip
    16·
    4 months ago

    I hope this demolition company is doing this work for fun. No chance of getting paid with the shutdown and all…

  • neidu3@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
    12·
    4 months ago

    The demolition and the general idea doesn’t bother me as much as the fact that we all know it’s gonna be filled with gold-colored tacky shit and other fugly crap.

    • IndridCold@lemmy.ca
      10·
      4 months ago

      Not to mention the fact there is really no reason for a ball room at the White House. They hold these events in more fitting venues.

      This isn’t a ball room though. This is a throne room for the great Hamberder King.