National parks another victim of Trump

The Guardian -  This weekend, hundreds of thousands more will pour into national parks across the country to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the US, looking to connect with nature and experience part of the nation’s shared heritage. “There is nothing so American as our national parks,” Franklin D Roosevelt said during a 1934 radio address, championing how the mountains, glaciers, lakes and trees had been pulled from “private exploitation”. 

But as the US memorializes its history, the hundreds of places safeguarded by the National Park Service (NPS) face an uncertain future.  Protections and federal support for parks have eroded under the Trump administration, which has cut millions of dollars from the NPS budget and slashed staffing levels. Overcrowding in nature areas has threatened ecosystems and increased hazards for visitors, while extreme conditions fueled by the climate crisis create more dangers for the landscapes and those who love them.

The Hill -   A federal appeals court reversed a lower court’s order requiring the National Park Service (NPS) to restore signs and exhibits that were removed by the Trump administration. The 1st Circuit Court of Appeals on Thursday halted the ruling, which would have restored park materials that the administration says were purged as part of the administration’s effort to get rid of materials that “disparage” Americans.

 The judges determined that the Trump administration “made a strong showing that the harms that the district court relied on” to order the restoration of the materials did not meet the standards for an injunction.