U.S. judge to probe possible DOJ misrepresentations in Trump golf course renovation case

U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes announced on Friday that she will investigate whether Justice Department lawyers provided false or incomplete information about President Donald Trump's proposal to close the East Potomac Golf Course for a 15-month renovation. The judge questioned the timing and accuracy of the administration's notice that trees would be removed from the historic 106-year-old course, asking whether the late notification was made in bad faith.

Trump has posted that the course will be shut in November and described the redesign as "one of the Best and Most Spectacular Golf Courses anywhere in the World," while also referring to the existing site as "Trash Island." The legal dispute, initiated in February by the D.C. Preservation League and other groups, intensified after the National Park Service began cutting hundreds of trees without informing the court until hours before work began.

Reyes previously ordered a halt to tree removal until at least 26 October and required three business days' notice for any further permanent changes. In a recent 70-page ruling, she extended that order and barred additional alterations without ten days' notice while the lawsuit proceeds. The administration has indicated it will appeal the ruling.

During the hearing, government lawyers confirmed that the course would indeed be closed for renovations, contradicting earlier statements that no closure was planned. Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward, the Justice Department’s third-ranking official, responded to Reyes’ inquiries about the involvement of the Secretary of the Interior.

Reyes concluded the session by stating she would examine whether Justice Department attorneys "have made misrepresentations to the court and otherwise violated ethical rules," including whether the delayed notice was intentionally deceptive and whether prior false statements were left uncorrected.