A federal judge is moving to appoint a special master to investigate whether Justice Department lawyers and administration officials purposely misled her court — and when government attorneys can deceive a federal judge with impunity, no American's rights are safe.
U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes said Saturday she intends to name Jessie Liu, the former U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia under Trump's first term, to examine whether Interior Department, National Park Service, and DOJ officials violated ethics or lied to the court during a lawsuit over the renovation of the historic East Potomac Golf Course along the Potomac River. The lawsuit was filed in February by the DC Preservation League and two golfers.
Reyes wants answers on two fronts: whether officials lied about the scope of renovation plans during months of hearings, and whether they were truthful about steps already taken — including the cutting of hundreds of trees in early October. The tree-cutting happened despite assurances DOJ lawyers gave the court. Reyes issued an injunction last month temporarily barring any additional tree removal and requiring 10 days' written notice before any "irreversible modification" to the course while the case proceeds.
The judge announced a formal investigation of the government's conduct at an Oct. 30 hearing. What triggered it? Trump's own Truth Social posts, which laid out plans for the golf course and stated construction would begin Nov. 15, with the park closed for 15 months — posts that directly contradicted what government lawyers had been telling the court. Earlier in the case, Reyes had rejected multiple motions from the plaintiffs to intervene, saying she trusted the government attorneys. That trust appears broken.
Georgetown law professor David Super said a judge's formal investigation of trial participants "can be a precursor to holding someone in contempt of court." Super added it reflects "the difficulty she had in determining who initiated the tree-cutting in defiance of the assurances DOJ provided. She doesn't have the time to keep holding long, complex hearings and so wants a special master to narrow the issues."
Jessie Liu is a notable choice. As D.C.'s chief federal prosecutor, she oversaw matters referred from Robert Mueller's investigation into Trump's 2016 campaign. Trump later nominated her for associate attorney general — the DOJ's third-highest job — but she withdrew after opposition from the Republican-led Senate Judiciary Committee over her past membership in a lawyers' group that supported abortion rights. She resigned from the group, citing its left-leaning positions, and now practices at Liu Shur Kravis LLP.
The Guardian framed Liu's appointment as investigating whether "Trump lawyers purposely misled" the judge, while the other outlets more neutrally described it as investigating whether "government lawyers and administration officials" did so. The distinction matters: the question isn't just political — it's institutional. Someone at DOJ gave this court assurances, and someone in the government ignored them. Who gave the order? Who benefits from the deception? That's what the special master is now tasked with finding out.
Both sides have until Friday to respond to Reyes' plan. The central question remains unanswered: who authorized tree-cutting in defiance of what government lawyers told a federal judge — and how high up does the answer go?
