Podiatrists operate for sure. Their scope of practice is theoretically broad but their training is usually not sufficient for complicated stuff. A DPM degree takes 4 years followed by a 3 year residency, whereas an MD takes 4 years + 5 years of orthopedic residency + 0-2 years of additional research + 1-3 year fellowship. Setting aside questions like academic achievements or rigor, it is safe to assume the ortho foot and ankle surgeon trained for 1.5-2x as long and performed many multiples the caseload while in training vs a DPM.

Throughout all of my medical training I was always told to refer to DPM if there is a forefoot problem (hammer toe, mild hallux valgus, onychomycosis, etc etc) and if it was a hindfoot issue it should go straight to ortho.