Trump Calls Judge Blocking DC Golf Course Work a 'Crazed Lunatic'

President Donald Trump went after the federal judge overseeing the fight over Washington’s East Potomac golf course early Monday, calling her “a crazed lunatic” in a Truth Social post and saying renovation work is “scheduled to begin IMMEDIATELY,” according to Mediaite and The Hill.

Trump did not name U.S. District Judge Ana C. Reyes in the post, Mediaite reported, but he made clear he was talking about the judge on the case. “The judge on the case is a crazed lunatic whose courthouse tapes will reveal, may be insane?” Trump wrote, according to The Hill.

JUST IN: East Potomac Golf Links will close immediately for 15 months of work to make it “world class," Trump said. Here’s what he posted this morning. https://t.co/ISnKXIaXVR

— NBC4 Washington (@nbcwashington) October 19, 2026

The post went up just after 6 a.m. Eastern, according to Mediaite, and Trump argued the administration doesn’t need a court’s blessing. “The United States Department of Interior wants to take a terrible and very unsafe golf course, and make it into a great, safe, and prestigious golf course,” Trump wrote, according to Mediaite. “They have an absolute right to do so. It’s as simple as that!”

Trump also took aim at the people who sued. “The random golfer bringing the ridiculous lawsuit has ZERO STANDING!” he wrote, according to Mediaite, adding that the experts at Interior “are allowed to do this First Class renovation ‘as of right'” and “do not need an approval.”

Judge refuses to step aside

The post came hours after Reyes refused the Justice Department’s demand that she recuse herself ahead of a key hearing Monday, The Hill reported. “By any objective measure, the Government fails to meet the standard for recusal,” Reyes wrote in a 13-page opinion issued late Sunday, according to The Hill.

The Justice Department had accused Reyes of “violating the basic norms” that require a judge to be fair and impartial, The Hill reported. The department took issue with her heated rhetoric in court, including asking a government lawyer whether they were unable to use a phone or drive a car, and with her demand that administration witnesses testify on a federal holiday, according to The Hill.

Reyes, an appointee of former President Joe Biden, pushed back in her ruling. “The Government created an emergent situation. The Court responded,” she wrote, according to The Hill.

How the fight escalated

The lawsuit, brought by a preservationist group and individual golfers, challenges the administration’s plan to turn East Potomac Park into a championship-style course, The Hill reported. Tensions spiked after the administration told the court on a Friday afternoon that hundreds of trees would be cut down that weekend, and Reyes has since blocked any additional tree-clearing, according to The Hill.

Politico’s Kyle Cheney, who listened to audio of last week’s courtroom exchange, reported that Reyes told a Justice Department attorney “Ignorance is not an excuse,” according to Mediaite.

Trump unveiled a new plan for the site on Sunday, The Hill reported. He said the course would close for 15 months to build “one of the Best and Most Spectacular Golf Courses anywhere in the World,” according to Mediaite. Washington’s ABC affiliate, 7News, reported in a post on X that the closure is set to begin Nov. 15.

“The finished product will be World Class, and bring income and great prestige back to D.C.,” Trump wrote Monday, according to Mediaite.

Monday’s hearing will be the next test of whether the administration’s timeline holds. Daily Beltway will update this story as the court acts.

Sources

• Mediaite: Trump Rages Against ‘Crazed Lunatic’ Judge Who Halted Potomac Golf Course Work
• The Hill: Judge refuses DOJ’s demand to step aside from golf course hearing
• 7News DC on X: East Potomac Golf Links to close for 15 months beginning Nov. 15
• NBC4 Washington on X: Trump’s Monday post on East Potomac Golf Links

Reporting by Daily Beltway.