NATION : Vandals Break, Uproot Elm Planted by Bush, Foley in Spokane Park

A tree planted by President Bush in Riverfront Park last week has been vandalized and is probably unsalvageable, officials said.

A park worker Sunday morning found the 12-foot American elm sapling, grown from seeds taken from a tree on the White House lawn, uprooted near where it had been planted, Sgt. Jim Nicks said.

“We have no suspects and we have no idea why it happened,” he said.

Taylor Bressler, park superintendent, said after an inspection this morning that the tree was broken and uprooted. “All three branches have been ground off,” he said. “It didn’t look real hot, to tell you the truth.”

Bush and House Speaker Thomas S. Foley (D-Wash.) planted the tree Tuesday during a ceremony in the park’s Lilac Bowl. The elm was not marked as the tree Bush had planted, because a plaque he brought along had not yet been installed, officials said. But it was the only recently planted tree in the park.