US judge again blocks Trump's makeover plan for DC golf course

A federal judge on Saturday (November 14) again blocked President Donald Trump's plan to remake the golf course at Washington's East Potomac Park. In a 30-page decision, US District Judge Ana Reyes temporarily blocked the federal government from moving forward with a plan that would have closed the riverside park on Sunday (November 15) for renovations, ruling that the administration's stated reasons for closing the park were “pretextual” and that the government violated at least two federal laws “to meet an arbitrary deadline.” (File photo: East Potomac Park Golf Course.)

Judge: closing a historic park “indefinitely” on shaky grounds

“The government proposes to close a historic park, daily enjoyed by Washingtonians of all stripes, indefinitely,” Reyes wrote. She added that the government does not have to maintain golf operations at the site, but “cannot use the absence of golf operations as a reason to exclude the public.” The park, near the Jefferson Memorial about 2 miles (3 km) south of the White House, has three golf courses totaling 36 holes, a miniature golf course and a paved loop popular with cyclists and runners.

A championship-level course that could host the US Open

Trump said in an October 18 social media post that the closure would last 15 months and would transform the park's golf offerings into “one of the Best and Most Spectacular Golf Courses anywhere in the World,” geared toward professional golfers. The proposed redesign would turn the area into a single 18-hole championship course that Trump has said could hold world-class events such as the US Open and the Ryder Cup, while remaining open to the public.

Preservation group sued; judge ordered ethics inquiry into government lawyers

The ruling came in a lawsuit brought by the DC Preservation League, a historic preservation group that says Trump's plan to redevelop the park violates various federal regulations and statutes. The group's lawyers earlier won a ruling from Reyes that blocked the National Park Service from cutting down trees at the park or making other irreversible modifications without advance notice. Reyes said last month that the government's removal of hundreds of trees from the course and failure to tell the preservation group about the work “has cost the government all of its credibility” in the case, and she has ordered an ethics investigation into whether government lawyers repeatedly misled her about the timeline for the park's closure. The Justice Department has accused Reyes of overstepping her authority and demanded her recusal, a request she denied. Democracy Forward, which represents the preservation league and two local residents, said it was grateful that Reyes stopped “another one of the president's vanity projects.” The Interior Department, Justice Department and the White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Another round in the judiciary's pushback

Reyes, who was appointed by Democratic President Joe Biden and whom Trump has called a “lunatic,” has become the latest instance of the federal judiciary pushing back against Trump's sweeping efforts to redesign the nation's capital through major construction projects. The ruling is the latest setback for the makeover plan, and the government may still appeal.