There are approximately 3,800 trees in East Potomac Park.
Posted by The Lawfare Podcast, Checked
- Sources
- 1 contradict1 support2 context
- Said
- 1 time·
- Confidence
- 55%
The Lawfare PodcastSep 14, 2026
The only source giving a total tree count for East Potomac Park is NBC's report of a Justice Department attorney's court statement that the park has 3,800 trees, which supports the claim.
A detail. The sources confirm the gist; the verdict faults a detail such as a date, number or wording.
A guest makes this claim. Listeners heard it, so it counts against the post, and on the guest's own record.
This claim is about the present, so it is judged as of the day it was checked.
What was said
… And this is more than 10 trees. They've cut down about, now they say 100. They said in the hearing 150 trees, 77 of which were invasive and 77 of which were dead, dying, or hazardous. So I guess that makes 144, not 150. And there are around 3,800 trees in the whole East Potomac Park, but they've said, yeah, it's routine maintenance, and it doesn't really have to do with the golf course. And, you know, not all of them were on the golf course. …
The Lawfare Podcast · · from the transcriptPost →What we found
Contradicts. The NPS Cherry Blossom page says there are approximately 3,800 cherry trees within the park, so the same number is attached to cherry trees alone; if that is the right measure, the total number of trees would be higher than 3,800.[1]
Supports. NBC News reported that a DOJ attorney told the court that of the 3,800 trees that exist in the park, 77 were cut as invasive and 73 as dead, dying or hazardous, which directly states the total as 3,800.[3]
Context. The NPS tree-management project lists 529 trees for removal and the Casey Trees report estimates canopy coverage, but neither gives a total count of trees in the park.[2][4]
Sources
4 sources: 2 primary, 2 not rated
- 1Types of Trees - Cherry Blossom Festival (U.S. National Park Service)nps.gov · primary source · cited for: contradicts
- 2ParkPlanning - East Potomac Park Golf Course - Tree ...parkplanning.nps.gov · primary source · cited for: context
- 3East Potomac Park: Judge allows continued tree work by Trump ...nbcwashington.com · not rated · cited for: supports
- 4East Potomac Park: A Voice for Our Trees, a Say in Our Parkscaseytrees.org · not rated · cited for: context
Where this claim was made
Said in 1 published post
Related claims
- The National Park Service cut down trees on and around the East Potomac golf course.True
- The government reported cutting down 150 trees in East Potomac Park, of which 77 were invasive and 77 were dead, dying, or hazardous.Mixed
- Judge Reyes requested that the government inform the court before cutting down more than 10 trees in East Potomac Park.True
- The Trump administration moved to cut down over 400 trees at a public golf course in Washington D.C. without notifying the court.Mixed
- Testing of material from the East Wing dumped at the East Potomac Golf Course showed no presence of asbestos.True