Judge extends court-ordered block on Trump’s renovation plans for public golf course

ABC News and CNN report that U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes has prolonged a court order halting the Trump administration's work on East Potomac Golf Course, a public course in Washington, DC. Her ruling matters because it weighs the president's own public statements against what government lawyers and employees have told the court.

ABC News says the preliminary injunction bars the government from removing or damaging more trees there, and requires 10 days' written notice before any irreparable change to the course's forms or features while the lawsuit proceeds. CNN describes a 70-page opinion that sets similar notice rules for other major changes and quotes Trump's statements about his plans. Reyes said she had to act because the government did what it had promised it would not do.

Both outlets tie the dispute to the felling of more than 400 trees with little warning to the plaintiffs, the D.C. Preservation League and two golfers. ABC News adds that Trump announced on October 18 a 15-month closure starting November 15, then said a day later that work would begin immediately. It also reports that Reyes, a Biden nominee, refused the administration's request that she step aside after it questioned her impartiality.

Summarized by PolitiKool from ABC News and CNN’s reporting. Read the full story at ABC News → Also at CNN →