Trump Says Judge Will Be ‘Fully Responsible’ for Injuries at DC Golf Course He Plans to Close
President Trump said he will hold U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes “fully responsible” for anyone hurt at Washington’s East Potomac golf course, as his administration confirmed plans to close it next month.
“We will hold the judge, Ana C. Reyes, fully responsible for anybody who is hurt, or killed, on this very dangerous, dilapidated, and unsightly Golf Course,” Trump wrote on Truth Social late Wednesday.
Trump called the public course “highly dangerous, dilapidated, and absolutely disgusting,” described “excrement in the stairwell,” and said a White House staffer had been “hit violently in the chest” by a golf ball.
He called the course a “National Disgrace” and promised a “WORLD CLASS PUBLIC Golf Course that is AFFORDABLE for locals.”
Hours later, a Justice Department filing confirmed the course will close Nov. 15, Bloomberg Law reported. Stanley Woodward, the department’s third-ranking official, signed the notice.
The filing marks a reversal. At an Oct. 19 hearing, Woodward told the court “there is no plan to close the course,” and acting National Park Service Director Jessica Bowron testified she was not aware of closure plans.
A Championship Course Proposal
The Park Service plans to submit a design by golf architect Tom Fazio to the National Capital Planning Commission on Oct. 30, ahead of the commission’s December meeting.
The filing describes a “World Class, championship-level golf course” that could host a PGA championship. It says closing the course “is necessary regardless of the ultimate design… given the significant safety hazards.”
The administration has also signed a new lease agreement with the course operator, and Reyes ordered Woodward to appear before her again Friday, the New York Times reported.
The Nov. 15 closing date falls a little more than two weeks after the filing, beyond the 10 business days of notice Reyes required before any closure.
Reyes, a Biden appointee, ruled Monday that the government may not remove more trees and must give 10 business days’ notice before closing the course or making major changes. The Justice Department has appealed.
The case, DC Preservation League v. Interior, was brought by the preservation group and two golfers who play the course. Congress established the course in 1897 on land in East Potomac Park along the Potomac River.
The dispute has grown heated. More than 400 trees have been cut at the site, according to The Hill, and The Independent put the figure at about 430.
At an Oct. 12 hearing, Reyes told government lawyers, “I trusted you all not to do precisely what you have done,” and said the government had lost “all of its credibility.”
Trump has attacked Reyes before, calling her a “crazed lunatic.” The golf course fight is one of several legal clashes over his building projects in the capital.
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