U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes issued a temporary restraining order Monday halting tree removal at East Potomac Golf Links, a historic public golf course on an island in the Potomac River south of the National Mall in Washington, D.C. The order came after the Trump administration removed approximately 430 trees from the course over the weekend with minimal advance notice to the court or to preservation groups challenging the project in litigation.

The judge held an emergency hearing on Columbus Day to address the tree removal, which occurred after the National Park Service filed notice of the work at 4:55 p.m. on Friday—just before a three-day holiday weekend began. Workers began cutting trees early Saturday morning. During the hearing, Reyes expressed anger at what she characterized as deliberate circumvention of her instructions. "I trusted you all not to do precisely what you have done," the judge told Justice Department attorneys. "You did not do your best. You did your absolute worst," she said when a government lawyer claimed the administration had done its best to provide notice.

Reyes had previously made clear in court proceedings that she did not want to issue a restraining order, stating at an earlier hearing: "I am not the Lorax. I do not speak for the trees. I am a judge." However, she said the administration's actions had left her no choice. "What has happened has cost the government all of its credibility," the judge said. She characterized the government's conduct as "inexcusable" and suggested the timing indicated intentional strategy. "The Occam's razor interpretation was that the government precisely intended to do precisely what it has done, which is intentionally delay letting the plaintiffs and the court know what is happening," Reyes stated.

During the hearing, the judge called National Park Service officials to testify about the speed and justification for the tree removal. Deputy Director for Operations Frank Lands testified that the plan came together in the last week and that he had been directed to execute it by Greg Wischer, deputy chief of staff to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum. When Lands expressed pride in moving quickly, Reyes ordered Wischer to appear at a follow-up hearing scheduled for Tuesday. National Mall and Memorial Parks Superintendent Kevin Griess testified that workers had identified approximately 300 more trees that still needed to be cut down. According to court filings, the National Park Service claimed the work was part of a restoration plan dating to 2019, based on a Cultural Landscape Report, and was intended to restore the course's original landscape and improve safety. However, sources noted that none of the trees removed Saturday had been identified as hazardous, and testimony indicated there was no urgent timeline for the work.

The case involves President Trump's stated plan to transform the century-old public golf course into what he called "one of the greatest golf courses anywhere in the world." Trump announced the renovation plans in June 2026 on Truth Social, describing the current course as "dilapidated, worn out, and very dangerous and outdated" and stating that work would begin on September 1st. The DC Preservation League and local golfers are challenging the renovation plan, citing concerns that the administration is proceeding without completing required environmental and historic preservation reviews under the National Environmental Policy Act.

The tree removal is not the administration's first contested renovation project in Washington. The plaintiffs noted in their lawsuit that the administration had abruptly razed the White House's East Wing in the prior year, with debris later dumped on the East Potomac Golf Course and used as landfill. The course itself contains significant historical plantings, including some of the 3,000 Japanese flowering cherry trees gifted by Japan's government in 1912, as well as elms, oaks, pines, and willows that represent over a century of landscape design history.

Reyes imposed a temporary restraining order blocking any tree removal through at least 7 a.m. Tuesday and scheduled a hearing for October 19 to hear from additional Interior Department officials, including Deputy Chief of Staff Greg Wischer and acting National Park Service Director Jessica Bowron. The judge stated she had no faith the government would comply with her instructions without an active court order in place. "I have no faith that the government isn't going to cut them down unless there's an order in place not to do so," she said.