USAupdated 45m ago2 min read
Judge Ana Reyes Orders Trump Administration To Halt East Potomac Golf Course Tree Cutting Until Oct. 26
This article is an automated aggregation of coverage from news outlets. Our editorials offer in-depth analysis curated by the NewsCord team.
Judge Ana Reyes halts tree cutting at East Potomac Golf Course through Oct. 26 Department of the Interior and National Park Service barred from cutting additional trees
Court Blocks Tree Cutting
U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes ordered the Trump administration to halt work on the East Potomac Golf Course until Oct. 26, after she issued a 24-hour pause that could be extended to 14 days if necessary.
Reyes directed the government that it “must provide the court and plaintiffs three business days’ written advance notice prior to making any irreparable modification to any permanent form or feature of the East Potomac Golf Course.”
The National Park Service had ordered cutting of hundreds of trees at the park after filing court notification only minutes before the close of business on Oct. 9 on a holiday weekend, and at least 400 trees were cut down over the weekend with plans for several hundred more.
Reyes said the court concluded officials raced to undertake the tree management plan “because President Trump demands haste on his redesign,” and she said the government’s actions had “cost the government all credibility with me.”
Lorax Ruling and Credibility
Judge Ana Reyes invoked Dr Seuss’s The Lorax in a ruling that blocked President Donald Trump from cutting down trees at the East Potomac Golf Course, after the Department of the Interior ordered the removal of hundreds of trees as part of renovation plans.
Reyes wrote, “the ground, landscape and vistas will be irrevocably altered” because “destroyed trees cannot be replaced,” and the filing added, “Just ask the Lorax.”
The Washington Post said Reyes formalized a temporary restraining order barring the government from removing additional trees at East Potomac Golf Links through Oct. 26, and it quoted Reyes writing, “Breakneck speed to clear trees that posed no harm.”
The Washington Post also reported that Reyes rejected the government’s position that the cutting was unrelated to Trump’s plan, writing that it was “a coincidence” the Interior Department cut down hundreds of trees weeks after the President asked DOI to cut down trees at the Course.
Next Steps and Stakes
The plaintiffs in the lawsuit, the DC Preservation League and two local golfers, asked Reyes to issue a preliminary injunction that would extend the prohibition on tree removal beyond Oct. 26 while the case proceeds.
Reyes scheduled another hearing for Oct. 19 and ordered Jessica Bowron, acting director of the National Park Service, and Gregory Wischer, deputy chief of staff at the Interior Department, to appear.
NPR reported that Reyes had ordered the administration in May to get court approval before cutting down more than 10 trees at the golf course, and she warned Monday that “if that order is violated by two seconds, there are going to be contempt proceedings.”
NPR also reported that a National Park Service official said in a Friday court filing that plans for renovations “remain in the conceptual stage,” while the Interior Department told NPR it is “committed to continuing the relationships we have built with the local golf communities” to keep courses “open, affordable, enjoyable, accessible, and world-class.”