Judge temporarily blocks Trump from wrecking golf course further

Judge Ana Reyes has issued a temporary restraining order barring President Donald Trump's administration from taking any further action on East Potomac Park and its golf course after it tore out more than 400 trees.

On Monday, the administration was hauled into court as a very angry judge "screamed" at the Trump lawyers for flagging the tree teardown notice at 4:55 p.m. on a Friday before a holiday weekend. It took 24 hours, and the trees were gone.

The judge made it clear she felt "lied to" by the administration after giving it a very long leash, saying she trusted it to keep the court informed. Ignoring a court order like that infuriated Judge Reyes, and she was expected to come down hard on her ruling.

Norm Eisen, whose firm Democracy Defenders represents the clients in the case, celebrated on social media, revealing that the restraining order was granted.

"Court has halted the Trump admin tree removal at E. Potomac Golf Links, where we are contesting the dumping of toxic East Wing debris & creation of a hideous Trump golf course," he wrote. "Huge win for clients & cocounsel Democracy Forward, Lowell & Assoc, & us at Democracy Defenders."

The toxic debris he's talking about came from the East Wing of the White House, where Trump similarly began bulldozing the historic building during the government shutdown. They then dumped that debris onto the golf course to use as "filler" in Trump's revitalization project. There were concerns that none of it was tested for toxic chemicals, asbestos and other things before being dumped on the land.

What is next is whether she was angry enough to hold Trump officials in contempt of court.

While the trees matter to those in Washington, the key part of the case is that the court's demands were broken, adding to a long pattern of behavior. The administration has refused to comply with orders in New Jersey (more than 50 times), Minnesota, Rhode Island, Illinois and several in Washington, D.C.

While administration officials like Stephen Miller have tried to say that federal judges have no place in golf course construction, the issue is about the administration breaking a court order. That can land a lawyer or official in contempt of court. Sometimes that means a hefty fine and other times it can mean jail.

So, when it happened again over the weekend, Judge Ana Rayes was understandably irate. She spent the holiday, when the courthouse would normally be closed, hunting for the person responsible.