Free Republic

Donald Trump promised to drain the swamp and clear the dead wood when he was elected. Now he’s doing it: White House to cut back magnolia tree planted by Andrew Jackson WaPo Exclusive: Iconic White House tree to be cut down CNN Although some want to give Melania the credit/blame: Melania Trump Orders Large Portion Of Historic White House Tree Removed HuffPoMelania Trump Orders Removal of Near-200-Year-Old Tree From White House NewsweekDead wood visible even to the untrained eye Journalists seem to revere the Jackson magnolia tree more than the presidency itself these days: The enormous magnolia tree stood watch by...

Ynet is reporting that by order of the Agriculture Ministry, the magnolia tree brought from the US by the president and planted by Obama and Peres earlier this afternoon is being dug up. Really. Plants cannot be brought in from abroad “without undergoing a check” by the ministry, the report quotes the bureaucrats as saying. If this were April 1, we’d assume this was a wind-up. As the Netanyahu-Obama talks near their mid-evening break — there’ll be a press conference in 20 minutes or so, and then a working dinner — Ambassador Michael Oren is asked whether, for all the...

<p>TITUSVILLE, Florida (AP) -- A woman on her morning jog was killed Tuesday after being crushed by a 40-foot magnolia tree that fell on her.</p> <p>Amber Farrell, 27, was about 25 feet from the tree on a residential street when it fell and struck her from behind, trapping her under its 2-foot-thick trunk, said police spokesman Todd Hutchinson.</p>