Politics
Federal judge freezes planned overhaul of East Potomac golf course
A federal judge temporarily barred the Trump administration from cutting more trees or closing East Potomac Golf Links, where more than 400 trees were felled this month. The ruling challenges the administration’s claim that the removals were routine maintenance as President Donald Trump pursues a championship-level renovation.
A federal judge on Monday temporarily blocked the Trump administration from cutting down more trees or closing East Potomac Golf Links, a public golf course in Washington that President Donald Trump wants upgraded to championship-level standards.
The order from Judge Ana Reyes followed the removal of more than 400 trees at the course earlier this month. The administration had planned to close the course on Nov. 15 for an overhaul, according to the court proceedings described in the ruling.
A preservation group and two local residents sought an order to stop further tree cutting. The Interior Department had characterized the removals as routine maintenance, but Reyes said that explanation conflicted with Trump’s public statements about his plans for the course.
“Rarely, if ever, has the United States Department of Justice urged a federal court not to believe the sitting President,” Reyes wrote. “And yet, here we are.”
The temporary order halts additional tree removal and the planned closure while the legal dispute proceeds. Reyes had also questioned the government’s maintenance explanation at a hearing earlier in October.
The case puts the administration’s proposed renovation of a public recreational space under legal scrutiny, with the immediate question of whether further changes can proceed before the court resolves the dispute.