Chief Justice John Roberts broke with his conservative colleagues in a Supreme Court decision Monday that allowed construction on the proposed White House ballroom to continue, saying the ruling upsets the separation of powers. Roberts…
Page B1From§Eachthe wee small hours edition — 1 September 2026
Supreme Court fast-tracks White House ballroom as chief justice vows no separation victory
Born from the fevered dreams of executive ambition, the White House ballroom has survived many a procedural obstacle. Its latest chapter: the Supreme Court, with not one but two approvals in the span of a week, and the chief justice dissenting, lamenting the loss of separation of powers—'no victory for separation,' he wrote, perhaps with a sigh. Preceded in death by the old rules, survived by a construction crew and a velvet rope. It is not the first time a building has outlived a principle, nor will it be the last. The record now shows: the separation of powers, once robust, now a bit threadbare. In lieu of flowers, send a donation to your local civics class, and maybe a hard hat—policy foundations seem to be crumbling.
“They move heaven and earth for a ballroom, but when the chief justice calls out the power grab, it's just another Tuesday. The only thing separating us is the velvet rope.”
“Look, the Supreme Court is simply allowing construction—there's nothing wrong with that. The chief justice's dissent is a procedural matter, not a criticism. Did I say 'no victory'? That doesn't sound like me.”
The receipts
Also, a principal helped save 900 children in Nepal. Here’s the latest at the end of Monday.
Lower-court rulings would have blocked construction of the 90,000-square-foot ballroom after finding that the Trump administration should have first sought approval from Congress.
This page is a back-issue: the story as it ran, receipts as they were. The current edition is at the front.