In the capital, a federal judge has paused a government plan to close a 106-year-old public course and park that many Washingtonians treat as a shared inheritance, at least until the end of this month. The decision turns on a familiar tension in public life: whether a park belongs to the people who walk and play on it, or to the officials who would reshape it in their own vision. The judge has found the stated reasons for the closure unconvincing and the timing suspicious, and has opened a deeper look at whether the government's lawyers were candid with the court. What remains unsettled is whe
Judge Temporarily Blocks Trump Administration From Closing Washington DC's East Potomac Golf Links
A historic park, enjoyed daily by Washingtonians, closed indefinitely
Mark
Why does a golf course closure end up in federal court at all?
Mimi
Because it's public parkland run by the National Park Service, and the DC Preservation League and others sued in February over the redevelopment plans. The judge found the government broke at least two federal laws.
Mark
What actually changes on the ground now?
Mimi
The park and course can't be closed on 15 November as announced. But Judge Reyes also said the administration doesn't have to actively manage either one.
Luke
That's a real caveat. Blocked from closing isn't the same as required to maintain. The reporting doesn't say what that means in practice.
Mark
The tree cutting seems central to the tone of the case.
Mimi
Hundreds of trees were cut, and the court got notice only 15 hours beforehand. That's what led her to order a halt and demand three business days' notice for permanent changes.
Luke
And Trump announced the 15-month closure after that order. Worth noting, though, that the order itself is temporary, running only to 28 November.
Mark
What about the claim the course is dangerous?
Mimi
Trump cited diseased trees and a collapsing seawall. The judge called the government's justifications pretextual.
Luke
Pretextual is her finding at this stage, in a restraining order. The seawall's condition isn't independently established in this reporting, and the White House hasn't yet responded to the BBC.
Mark
And the inquiry into the lawyers?
Mimi
A special master will look at whether Justice Department attorneys misled the court or acted in bad faith.
Luke
It's an inquiry, not a finding. Nothing has been concluded about misconduct.
Der Puls
- A federal judge has halted the planned closure of East Potomac Golf Links, a 106-year-old course, just days before work was set to begin.
- Hundreds of trees were cut after the National Park Service gave the court only 15 hours' notice, sparking alarm over bad faith.
- Trump has publicly called the course 'Trash Island' and promised a 15-month rebuild, openly defying the spirit of the court's earlier orders.
- A special master will investigate whether Justice Department lawyers misled the court, with the restraining order holding firm until 28 November.
In the capital, a federal judge has paused a government plan to close a 106-year-old public course and park that many Washingtonians treat as a shared inheritance, at least until the end of this month. The decision turns on a familiar tension in public life: whether a park belongs to the people who walk and play on it, or to the officials who would reshape it in their own vision. The judge has found the stated reasons for the closure unconvincing and the timing suspicious, and has opened a deeper look at whether the government's lawyers were candid with the court. What remains unsettled is whether beauty and renewal can be pursued without first pushing aside the public's standing to be consulted.
A federal judge in Washington has put a temporary stop to the Trump administration's plan to close East Potomac Golf Links, a 106-year-old public course and park about two miles south of the White House. The closure was scheduled to begin on 15 November. In a 30-page decision, Judge Ana Reyes issued a restraining order that will stay in place until 28 November, finding that the administration's stated reasons were pretextual and that federal laws had been violated in pursuit of what she called an arbitrary deadline.
The case began in February, when the DC Preservation League and other plaintiffs challenged redevelopment plans for the park. Tensions rose in October, when the National Park Service began felling hundreds of trees and informed the court only 15 hours before the work started. Reyes ordered a halt to tree removal and required advance notice before any further permanent changes.
Undeterred, Trump announced a 15-month closure for renovations, sharing a rendering of a redesigned course he described as world-class and tournament-ready. He dismissed the current layout as dilapidated, citing diseased trees and a hazardous seawall. Reyes was clear that the government may not close the park, though it is not required to actively manage it.
Reyes has also opened an inquiry, with an independent special master, into whether Justice Department lawyers misled the court or withheld information. The next steps will decide whether the closure can ever proceed.
A federal judge in Washington has stopped, for now, the Trump administration's plan to shut down East Potomac Golf Links, a 106-year-old public course and park about 2 miles south of the White House. The closure was due to begin on 15 November. In a 30-page decision issued on Saturday, US District Judge Ana Reyes issued a temporary restraining order that will run until 28 November.
Reyes found that the administration's stated reasons for closing the park were pretextual. She also found that the government violated at least two federal laws in order to meet what she called an arbitrary deadline. In her words, the government proposed to close a historic park, enjoyed daily by Washingtonians of all stripes, indefinitely. She wrote that the closure runs counter to the public interest in using national parkland, and that the government had not plausibly identified any harm it would suffer from an order preserving the status quo while the case continues.
The ruling has a limit. Reyes said Trump cannot close the park or its golf course, but she added that his administration is not required to actively manage either one.
The dispute goes back to February, when the DC Preservation League and other plaintiffs sued over redevelopment plans for the park. The course is one of three public courses run by the National Park Service in the capital. Reyes has overseen the challenge for months.
Things escalated in October. The National Park Service began cutting down hundreds of trees, and it did not tell Reyes until 15 hours before the work was due to start. After the trees came down, she ordered the administration to halt tree removal until at least 26 October. She also required three business days' notice to her before any other permanent changes were made.
Despite that order, Trump announced the course would close for 15 months from 15 November for renovations, and he shared a rendering of the redesign. An avid golfer, he has said the work will create one of the best and most spectacular golf courses anywhere in the world. He described the plan as a space open to the public but designed to the highest level of golf and able to host world-class tournaments. He called the current layout "Trash Island." In a Truth Social post, he said the course is old, broken and dilapidated, with falling, disease-infested trees and a collapsing, hazardous seawall. The BBC has contacted the White House for comment.
Reyes has also opened a separate inquiry into whether Justice Department attorneys made misrepresentations to the court or otherwise violated ethical rules. She wants to know whether the late notice about the renovation plans was given in bad faith, and whether the lawyers failed to correct earlier false statements or withheld information. She said she will conduct the inquiry with a special master, an independent third party.
The restraining order expires on 28 November, so the next step is further proceedings on whether the closure can go forward. The special master's inquiry into the government's lawyers continues alongside it.
Bemerkenswerte Zitate
The Government proposes to close a historic park, daily enjoyed by Washingtonians of all stripes, indefinitely.— Judge Ana Reyes
The current Course is old, broken, dilapidated, and of no further use or effect.— Donald Trump, on Truth Social
Möchten Sie die ganze Geschichte?
Das Original lesen bei BBC News ↗