President Donald Trump is setting his sights on Washington, D.C.’s public golf courses, with a particular focus on East Potomac Golf Links – situated on a prime stretch of riverfront real estate – according to an exclusive Wall Street Journal report.
The push grew out of an unusual logistical problem: what to do with the dirt generated by Trump’s demolition of the White House’s East Wing. While aides floated dumping it on the Ellipse, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum pitched a more strategic idea – hauling the soil to East Potomac, the public golf complex Trump hoped to renovate, which sits on low ground and would need fill to rise above the Potomac River floodplain for any major redesign.
The president reportedly called the idea “brilliant.”
In an interview with the Journal on Friday, Trump said he wants to play a central role in redeveloping the city’s municipal golf courses.
“If we do them, we’ll do it really beautifully,” he told the outlet from the Oval Office, signaling an interest in turning the links into world-class destinations.
The effort has raised alarms among some in Washington’s tight-knit golf community, who worry Trump’s vision could drive up costs and limit access for local residents, according to the Journal. Trump has countered that D.C. residents would pay lower rates than outside golfers.
At the center of the dispute is the National Links Trust, a nonprofit that holds a 50-year lease to restore and operate East Potomac, Rock Creek Park Golf, and Langston Golf Course – a historically significant course for Black golfers.
Earlier this year, the MAGA administration warned the group it could face default on its lease unless it accepted dirt from the East Wing demolition. Dump trucks soon followed.
But relations have since deteriorated, the Journal reported Friday. Interior officials have issued a formal default notice, and Trump said if the nonprofit doesn’t resolve the issue by the end of the month, the courses could revert to federal control – clearing the way for his redevelopment plans.
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