President Donald Trump ranted at a federal judge who has blocked his plans to renovate a public golf course in Washington, claiming on Wednesday night that a White House staffer was “hit violently in the chest” by a golf ball there.
In a late-night Truth Social post, Trump blasted the East Potomac Golf Links as “highly dangerous, dilapidated, and absolutely disgusting.”
“Golf balls soar through the holes at high speed and hit unexpecting Golfers — including a White House staffer who was, sadly, hit violently in the chest,” he added.
The president said he would hold U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes personally responsible if anyone dies on the course.
Reyes, a Biden appointee, temporarily barred the Interior Department on Monday from redeveloping the 106-year-old East Potomac Park — which includes the golf course and miles of public walking and cycling trails — amid a lawsuit from the DC Preservation League and two golfers. They argue the work will “irreparably destroy a priceless piece of American history.”
“We will hold the judge, Ana C. Reyes, fully responsible for anybody who is hurt, or killed, on this very dangerous, dilapidated, and unsightly Golf Course,” Trump wrote.
HuffPost has contacted the White House for an update on the staffer’s condition.
Trump has been engaged in a monthslong battle to turn the affordable course and historic park into an exclusive playground.
Last year, the president announced plans to overhaul the course, which is owned by the federal government and managed by the Interior Department’s National Park Service.
The preservation league’s lawsuit accused Trump of violating environmental laws, and his administration was already under orders to halt the redevelopment after it cut down hundreds of healthy, noninvasive trees without warning.
Undeterred, Trump announced on social media that the park would close by Nov. 15 and that renovations for his “world championship” course would last 15 months. He claimed he didn’t need the approval of Reyes, whom he labeled a “crazed lunatic.”
In her latest intervention, the judge ordered that no more trees be removed and required 10 days’ notice before the administration closes the course or makes further modifications to the grounds.