WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said Sunday that his administration will appeal a federal judge’s order keeping East Potomac Park and its public golf course open, calling the ruling a “highly destructive and political decision.”
The administration will “immediately appeal, on an expedited basis,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. The judge issued the order Saturday, shortly before the course was due to close Sunday for 15 months.
Trump spent much of the weekend posting photos of the course. In Sunday’s post, he argued that its condition justified the overhaul.
“It is in a terrible state of disrepair, as anybody can see by just looking at the pictures that are now circulating all over the Country, and in the Court,” he wrote. “They don’t call it Trash Island for no reason!”
What the Order Requires
U.S. District Judge Ana C. Reyes’ temporary restraining order bars the government from closing the park and the course during the daily hours they were open as of Nov. 14. It stays in effect through Nov. 28 unless the court acts sooner.
The order does not require the government to run the course for golf or hire a concessioner to do so. It does keep the course, Ohio Drive SW and the rest of the park south of Buckeye Drive SW open to the public, with limited exceptions for safety threats and seawall repairs.
A Justice Department spokesperson said Saturday that the order would not stop development of a golf course, NBC News reported.
Why the Judge Ruled
Trump’s posts last month, which set the closure date and tied it to the renovation, weighed heavily in the decision. Reyes wrote that the posts indicated the plan was final and that the National Park Service “will close the Park to implement it.”
The DC Preservation League and two local golfers filed the lawsuit in February. They argue the plan would change the character of the accessible course and make it unaffordable, a claim Trump has denied.
A preliminary injunction Reyes issued Oct. 26 also remains in effect, according to the order. The plaintiffs must post a $1 bond by Nov. 20.
Also Read: Judge Blocks Closure of East Potomac Park Set for Nov. 15