President Donald Trump blamed vandals on Thursday, June 25, for the problems plaguing the newly renovated Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, citing cuts in its liner and fertilizer dumped into the water as the causes of a peeling blue coating and thick algal blooms.
The $16 million project aimed to fix leaks and give the century-old pool a fresh “American flag blue” look in time for the nation’s 250th birthday celebrations.
Crews drained the 2,000-foot-long basin, applied a tinted plastic-like liner over foam sealant on the concrete bottom, and refilled it in early June.
But within days, the water turned green with algae, and pieces of the new blue surface started peeling and floating up.
Trump Blames Vandals for Reflecting Pool Damage
Trump said people used knives or box cutters to slice the liner, creating what he called a roughly 300- to 350-foot gash, and ripped at the material.
He also claimed that vandals poured fertilizer into the pool, sparking the growth of algae. The president said Interior Secretary Doug Burgum has proof, including arrests, but has not yet released specific evidence or images.
“We caught some people vandalizing the reflecting pool. They threw a little fertilizer into the water, which isn’t good. Fertilizer doesn’t go well with water. They caught them! They cut the bottom with a knife and pulled it,” Trump said.
What Federal Officials Say About the Investigation
A top National Park Service official backed up parts of that account in a court filing this week. Frank Lands, deputy director of operations, said U.S. Park Police responded on June 9 to a complaint about damage.
The report noted a caulk over the foam sealant, cut with a sharp knife or razor, and destruction of the delaminating surface material. About 70 fence post tops were thrown into the pool, too.
The Interior Department said it delayed public word on the June 9 incident because officials first thought it was isolated and didn’t want to encourage copycats.
Later, they saw more cases, including videos of people ripping at the coating, and realized it was a pattern.
Arrests, Police Reports, and Surveillance Video
The department reported seven arrests, seven federal citations, and 18 police reports overall. Park Police also released grainy surveillance video showing a person reaching into the pool.
The pool was refilled between June 4 and June 9, so the reported cut could have happened around that time.
Plans now call for draining the pool again after July Fourth to assess and fix the liner damage.
Not everyone accepts the vandalism story as the full picture. Experts and some news reports have questioned whether cuts to the foam sealant directly explain the widespread peeling of the blue coating or the algae.
Government documents reviewed by The New York Times showed two cuts in foam sections between expansion joints, but those may not tie directly to the visible surface problems.
Natural causes such as warm weather, phosphates, duck droppings, and shallow water often trigger algae growth in the pool, which has seen similar blooms after past work, including the 2012 renovation.
Democrats in Congress have called for investigations, criticizing the no-bid contracts awarded to companies with ties to Trump.
Virginia-based Atlantic Industrial Coatings got $14.7 million for the resurfacing and waterproofing. Ohio-based Green Water Solutions, owned by a Mar-a-Lago neighbor of Trump’s, received $1.7 million for a water-purification system.
Sen. Jeff Merkley of Oregon called the project a massive waste of taxpayer money after railing against fraud and abuse. Other senators, including New Mexico’s Martin Heinrich, want accountability for how the failures happened.
The Cultural Landscape Foundation sued earlier to stop the work, arguing for more public input and expert review. The group says there’s still time to adjust the course instead of rushing fixes.
Trump had initially pushed for a fast, low-cost job, talking about $1.8 million and a couple of weeks.
The price grew as the scope expanded, and the timeline stretched beyond two months. His motorcade even drove through the empty pool during inspection.
What’s Next for the $16 Million Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool Restoration
The Reflecting Pool, built in 1922, has long struggled with maintenance issues. Algae and water quality problems have come up before.
This time, the new liner and blue color drew extra attention and extra scrutiny when things went wrong quickly, especially after Trump repeatedly hyped it and attacked predecessors for not taking good care of the pool.
