Hearings in lawsuits against two separate administration-backed projects were unfolding in a single federal court building Friday, revealing the breadth of President Donald Trump’s attempts to mold parts of the District of Columbia as he wishes — and the underlying executive authority claims that lie beneath them.

The cases involved are an impending shutdown and reconfiguration of a historic public golf course and the construction of the monumental arch that, at 250 feet (75 meters), would be 100 feet taller than the Statue of Liberty is from its base to the top of the torch. The two projects are barely three miles or five kilometers apart.

The hearing on the proposed golf course change began as other recent ones have: U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes grilled Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward Jr.…