Investigate the East Potomac Golf Course Tree-Cutting Operation

Investigate the Trump administration's destruction of more than 500 trees at East Potomac Golf Course and demand full accountability for what Judge Ana Reyes called behavior "completely beyond the pale." This was not a landscaping decision. The administration carried out a mass tree-cutting operation on a Saturday with less than 24 hours' notice to the court, heading into a federal holiday weekend, despite ongoing litigation and prior assurances to Judge Reyes that nothing was happening and there was no urgency. NPS Deputy Director Frank Lands testified that an October 5 meeting led by Interior Department Chief of Staff Gregory Wischer set off the rushed operation. Saturday's cutting was only Part A of a plan that also includes Parts B and C. Wischer could not even be located to testify. This is a public historic landmark being dismantled in defiance of a federal court. The administration's lawyers gave assurances they apparently had no authority to keep, and the official who ordered the operation has so far avoided answering for it. Congress must step in. Demand Wischer testify publicly, and make clear that contempt of court and destruction of public land carry consequences.