A Trump Cabinet secretary went on CNN on Sunday to back up the president’s claims that “vandalism” is the reason why the $15 million renovations to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool still aren’t complete and will need to be redone after the July 4th weekend is over.
But Interior Secretary Doug Burgum seemed to refute the president’s claim that those supposed vandals were responsible for the algae blooms that have frustrated workers with the National Park Service over the past month.
The Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool is the latest of Donald Trump’s beautification projects to capture the public’s attention, both due to the persistent problems that have plagued the restoration efforts and Trump’s own bloviating on the structure, which he drew mockery by comparing it, in size, to the Empire State Building. Fencing once again surrounds the monument after it was closed down in response to the continued state of its waters, including blobs of green algae and the pool’s aqua-blue coating, which was peeling off in chunks.
The president blamed those chunks of separated paint on vandalism, claiming that criminals had slashed a series of cuts totaling around 350 feet across the pool’s bottom. He also accused criminals of being behind the algae blooms, giving no explanation as to how — or why — vandals would have carried out the act without being caught.
On Sunday, Burgum dispensed with that narrative entirely, telling CNN: “The algae is all gone. That was a momentary thing. As it was being filled, there was algae in the pipes.”
He did back up Trump’s other claims about the “gashes” in the coating, however, adding, “It’s multiple gashes that add up to 350 feet.”
“We weren’t expecting that we were going to have a small group of people that wanted to try to destroy effectively what is part of the Lincoln Memorial,” he said, while denying Dana Bash’s suggestion that Trump officials driving SUVs and other vehicles on the freshly-repainted surface could have contributed.
Trump’s post on Truth Social from one week ago blaming “criminally made algae” for the Reflecting Pool’s swamp-like appearance remains up.
He set aside the issue of blame for the algae growth on Sunday as he took to Truth Social while making an appearance at his golf club in Sterling, Virginia. The president posted several pictures of the refurbished Reflecting Pool alongside pictures and statements about other beautification projects around the District of Columbia. The statements touted the repair and refurbishment of fountains and other features at parks and spaces, including DuPont Circle, Lafayette Square, and the Theodore Roosevelt Island National Memorial.
Of the Reflecting Pool, a top official at the Interior Department wrote in a statement shared by Trump: “Our National Park Service team is now vacuuming up the dead algae resting on the bottom of some parts of the Reflecting Pool—just like the destroyed Iranian Navy resting on the bottom of the Persian Gulf.”
The president also posted photos comparing the pool’s appearance after it was re-filled to how it looked after repair work completed during the Obama administration, and published a flyer seeking aid for the U.S. Park Police’s efforts to identify a woman seen in an image sticking her hand in the water.
Trump had originally hoped that the Reflecting Pool project would be done in time for July 4th celebrations this weekend around Washington, D.C.
Instead, the project remains ongoing as the administration plans to once again drain the Reflecting Pool and re-apply the aqua blue pool coating. Costs for the project have soared past his initial $2 million estimate and are now climbing to nearly $15 million as the administration blames its critics for the damage and cost overruns.
A number of people, including a former Olympian, have been arrested and charged with felony vandalism or destruction of property over allegedly causing damage to the pool. The Olympian, David Hearn, denies causing any damage to the pool and his arrest has come as videos showed people being swarmed by police officers after dipping their hands into the Reflecting Pool’s waters during periods when the fencing was removed.
While the fair itself faced poor attendance in the days leading up to Saturday, an estimated 375,000 people were on the National Mall for the July 4th celebrations, even as temperatures climbed past 100 degrees fahrenheit.
