                                        {"id":429,"date":"2026-06-26T17:11:31","date_gmt":"2026-06-26T17:11:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=429"},"modified":"2026-06-26T17:11:31","modified_gmt":"2026-06-26T17:11:31","slug":"trumps-unsupported-claims-about-reflecting-pool-vandalism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=429","title":{"rendered":"Trump\u2019s unsupported claims about Reflecting Pool vandalism"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<p><strong>by Kate Yandell<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>ANALYSIS \u2014 President Donald Trump has repeatedly blamed vandals for damaging the new blue lining of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, which is now peeling, as well as for algae in the water. But the administration has not provided evidence to back up the president\u2019s claims. Experts say the pool\u2019s ills have a variety of plausible explanations that do not involve intentional harm.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=427\">Senate college sports bill authors plan talks with House<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Installing linings on pools and making sure they properly adhere is challenging, experts in pools and waterproof coatings have told news outlets, and improper surface prep or water intrusion can cause peeling, they said. Meanwhile, algae would be expected in a shallow, still, unshaded pool fed by nutrient-rich water that had been painted dark blue,\u00a0Steven Chapra, a water quality modeler and professor emeritus at Tufts University, told us.<\/p>\n<p>Despite these competing explanations, Trump has repeatedly asserted that vandals are to blame. \u201cYou know, we have 100- \u2026 I think 290-, 300-foot slit right through it,\u201d Trump\u00a0said\u00a0at a June 22 press event, after news\u00a0reports\u00a0surfaced of\u00a0blue pieces\u00a0of the pool\u2019s lining separating from the bottom. \u201cProbably a box cutter or a knife of some kind.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He claimed at the same event that someone may have put fertilizer in the pool, part of a\u00a0series\u00a0of\u00a0claims\u00a0that someone had poured in some substance or chemicals. \u201cThey did something to create the algae,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>Trump\u2019s comments on vandals cutting the pool\u2019s coating with a knife echoed theoretical statements he had made\u00a0on May 4, before reports of damage to the pool. \u201cIt\u2019s very strong. You couldn\u2019t \u2014 if you had a knife \u2014 I don\u2019t want to give anybody ideas,\u201d he said, referring to the pool\u2019s new coating. \u201cIf you had a knife, you can\u2019t even cut it, so strong, so powerful.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The president has since spoken or posted about alleged cuts in the pool at least daily,\u00a0with\u00a0the \u201cgash\u201d \u2014 or \u201cnumerous slashes\u201d \u2014 growing to cover a length of 350 feet and the possible implements used including \u201ca very sharp knife or razors.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>On June 24, Trump\u00a0posted\u00a0a photo of the dark blue bottom of the empty pool, stating, \u201cThis is the hard rubber surface \u2014 No Paint \u2014 Before the Vandals cut and pulled it apart!\u201d That same day, he specified that the vandals had gone to the \u201cbottom\u201d and \u201cstarted ripping it up,\u201d as well as cut \u201cthis very expensive stuff\u201d at the \u201cside of the pool right at water level.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The White House replied to our request for more information on the vandalism with a June 25\u00a0press release\u00a0claiming to have\u00a0surveillance\u00a0video, previously shared by the Department of the Interior with Fox News, of someone vandalizing the pool. The June 19 video, taken in the middle of the afternoon after news had broken of the damage to the pool, appears to show a person reaching into the water and pulling something out. However, it is unclear whether this individual was engaged in vandalism. <\/p>\n<p>The White House has not provided evidence of people causing long gashes or a series of gashes. The press release also included links to images of damage to the pool, including a jagged line on the bottom of the pool\u00a0posted\u00a0by a TMZ DC reporter on X, but it was unclear what had caused it. Nor has the administration provided evidence someone illicitly dumped something in the pool to cause algae growth.<\/p>\n<p>The White House press release linked to a\u00a0\u00a0from Frank Lands, the deputy director of operations for the National Park Service, stating that police on June 9 responded to an \u201cNPS report of damage to the reflecting pool, including a caulk over the foam sealant that was cut with a sharp knife or razor and destruction of delaminating surface material.\u201d Lands also said that \u201capproximately 70 fence post tops were thrown into the pool.\u201d It is unclear who is alleged to have made these cuts or thrown the fence post tops.<\/p>\n<p>The Department of the Interior sent us a link to one of its X\u00a0posts, which said, \u201cSix individuals have been arrested for vandalism at the Reflecting Pool.\u201d The post added that seven others were given federal citations and that 17 police reports for vandalism had been filed. <\/p>\n<p>The department would not give us further information about these arrests and citations, including any details of the individuals\u2019 alleged infractions. Not did they provide the names of the alleged vandals. The White House press release said that there had been at least seven arrests, seven federal citations and 18 police reports filed but again did not provide more details, other than to link to multiple news stories mentioning an Olympic canoeist who has disputed that he vandalized the pool. Washington, D.C.\u2019s Metropolitan Police Department referred us to the NPS.<\/p>\n<p>Brady McCarron, a spokesperson for the U.S. Marshals Service, told us that as of the morning of June 24, \u201cwe are showing 5 arrests\u201d listed as being by the DC Safe Task Force, including one on June 19 for \u201cvandalism (attempted destruction of property\/defacing public property)\u201d and four on June 20 for \u201cDestruction of government property.\u201d He did not provide further details on these arrests. The\u00a0DC Safe Task Force\u00a0is a multiagency federal body created by Trump \u201cto surge law enforcement presence in public spaces, strictly enforce \u2018quality-of-life\u2019 laws, and maximize federal immigration enforcement within the District.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, experts in pools, waterproof coatings and algae have said that there are many possible causes for the reflecting pool\u2019s issues that have nothing to do with vandalism. Below, we will discuss competing explanations.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Peeling problems<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Despite Trump\u2019s claims of vandalism to the\u00a0more than 100-year-old\u00a0reflecting pool, it\u2019s not clear what caused damage to its new lining. When\u00a0pressed\u00a0on June 22 on whether he had proof that vandals had made cuts in the pool, the president seemed to suggest the cuts themselves were the proof.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWell, let\u2019s put it this way. When you have a 350 \u2014 I think it\u2019s 350, not 250 \u2014 a 350-foot slit from one end to the other, you think that\u2019s proof? You think that\u2019s proof?\u201d Trump said to a reporter. He later suggested that there was photographic evidence, but when a reporter asked the president to release those photos Trump said, \u201cYou\u2019ll see it in court.\u201d He also suggested contacting the Interior and Parks departments.<\/p>\n<p>What is known is that the Department of the Interior awarded a no-bid\u00a0contract\u00a0on April 3 to Atlantic Industrial Coatings to paint the reflecting pool, with supplemental agreements issued through June 15 to total $14.7 million. The agency\u00a0justified\u00a0not getting bids from various contractors by saying the project was urgent and needed to be completed by July 4.<\/p>\n<p>The\u00a0plan\u00a0was to install an epoxy primer on top of the pool\u2019s concrete slabs, followed by a polyurea lining tinted \u201cAmerican flag blue,\u201d Superintendent of National Mall and Memorial Parks Kevin Griess explained in May 18 court filings.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe rehabilitation incorporated a combination of repair materials, epoxy priming technology, elastomeric waterproofing systems, and protective finish coatings,\u201d a June 18\u00a0press release\u00a0from Rhino Linings, the company whose products were used for the new liner, said.<\/p>\n<p>The idea of installing the lining over the full bottom of the pool was first suggested by the Trump administration, Griess said, and not initially by his staff. The original focus was on replacing the failed expansion joints, a major source of leakage. The project did not\u00a0address\u00a0the pool\u2019s leaking pipes.<\/p>\n<p>On June 18, around two weeks\u00a0after\u00a0the pool was refilled following the renovation, news outlets\u00a0began\u00a0reporting\u00a0that\u00a0blue material\u00a0was\u00a0peeling off\u00a0the pool\u2019s bottom. The New York Times later reported on June 23 that workers had\u00a0identified\u00a0the peeling at least two days earlier, while also noting separate damage to foam in the pool\u2019s expansion joints as of June 9. These joints \u2014 which\u00a0go around\u00a0the perimeter of the pool and horizontally across it in several places \u2014 allow the pool\u2019s concrete slabs to expand and contract as the weather changes.<\/p>\n<p>However, experts in pools and waterproof coatings have said that there are many possible reasons that a coating can improperly adhere.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou have to account for ambient conditions like rain, sun, humidity, moisture control in your substrate, thickness, evenness, and chemical compatibility,\u201d\u00a0Steve Goodale, a swimming pool consultant,\u00a0told\u00a0Wired, speaking about the difficulty of applying a waterproof pool lining. \u201cThere are so many things that can go wrong with that process. If the material hasn\u2019t bonded to the substrate for any number of reasons, then ultimately, the entire system will fail.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Goodale\u00a0told\u00a0the Washington Post that improper surface preparation or water seeping into the lining from the pool or from under it could also contribute to the peeling. He also said that the hydrogen peroxide that the Interior Department had used to try to treat the algae in the pool could have had an impact on the coating, although he said that this would be more likely to lead to \u201cfading, hazing or breakdown of the material\u201d than peeling. News outlets\u00a0reported\u00a0that the department had said it was using hydrogen peroxide to treat the algae\u00a0starting\u00a0as early as June 16.<\/p>\n<p>David McFayden, CEO of the paint and inspections services company KTA-Tator,\u00a0told\u00a0Scientific American that the available information was too limited to blame any one factor for the peeling, but he said issues worth investigating include how the surface was prepared before applying the coating and the water chemistry.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=425\">Federal AI security center measure advanced by House Science<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Atlantic Industrial Coatings, the contractor for the project, said in a June 21\u00a0statement\u00a0that it and the NPS had \u201cidentified some areas in the Reflecting Pool that require repairs,\u201d which will be done under warranty, and that these \u201cdo not indicate a failure of the liner.\u201d The following day, Rhino Linings, the company that made the pool\u2019s liner, said in a\u00a0statement\u00a0that the issues constituted \u201clocalized areas of finish coat separation,\u201d and not an issue with the \u201cunderlying waterproofing membrane.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWas it manual intervention that made those few places peel, or was that the chemical composition of what was in the water?\u201d Rhino vice president Francois Rivard\u00a0told\u00a0Politico. \u201cWe don\u2019t know until we have further results at this point, but it is not problematic,\u201d he said, explaining that the peeling only appears to affect the outer blue layer that is for aesthetic purposes.<\/p>\n<h2>Unclear timeline of damage<\/h2>\n<p>Concerns about the pool\u2019s new coating predate the most recently identified peeling issues.<\/p>\n<p>Tim Auerhahn, chairman of the pool training and consulting company the Aquatic Council,\u00a0told\u00a0the New York Times for a May 8 story that he would want to look closely at the impact of Trump\u00a0driving\u00a0his motorcade over the newly coated surface of the pool the day before. The Times\u00a0reported\u00a0May 12 that Department of Interior staff had expressed concerns about bubbling and small holes in a layer of the waterproofing material. And the Times\u00a0report\u00a0from June 23 and court\u00a0\u00a0linked to in the White House press release indicated that Park Police were aware of damage to or near the pool\u2019s foam expansion joints by June 9.<\/p>\n<p>This timeline indicates the new material in the pool had problems before the June 19 and 20 arrests the U.S. Marshals spokesperson mentioned, and before the June 19 surveillance video of someone removing something from the pool the White House press release linked to.<\/p>\n<p>Few details are available about the arrests. An Olympic canoeist, David Carter Hearn,\u00a0told\u00a0news\u00a0outlets\u00a0that he was arrested on June 19 for alleged destruction of government property. He said a piece of the blue lining had already partly peeled off and he touched it out of curiosity. He said he did not destroy anything.<\/p>\n<p>There are some images and videos from reporters that indicate people on June 19 \u2014 once the peeling pool was already a major news event \u2014\u00a0broke off\u00a0already-peeling coating or\u00a0held\u00a0pieces in their hands. However, there isn\u2019t evidence of people making gashes with a knife.<\/p>\n<p>The Washington Post also\u00a0reported\u00a0on June 20 seeing a U.S. Marshal detain someone for allegedly taking paint out of the pool and on June 21 seeing a Park Police officer issue someone a citation for allegedly removing something from the water.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>A surge in algae\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Beyond stopping leaking, Trump\u2019s reflecting pool project aimed to reduce algae, which has been a recurring\u00a0issue\u00a0for the reflecting pool.<\/p>\n<p>The project\u00a0included\u00a0$1.7 million in funding to Greenwater Services to install a new system for algae control. Nanobubble systems for algae control, such as the one installed by Greenwater Services, work by\u00a0introducing\u00a0tiny ozone bubbles to a body of water, which can kill algae.<\/p>\n<p>But despite efforts to mitigate the algae, an analysis done for the Washington Post\u00a0indicated\u00a0that the level of algae on June 13 \u2014 the week after the pool was refilled \u2014 was higher than in other June images going back to 2021.<\/p>\n<p>Trump claimed that someone may have added fertilizer to the water to cause the algal growth, but he didn\u2019t provide any evidence for this claim.<\/p>\n<p>Chapra, the water quality modeler from Tufts, told us that the reflecting pool represents \u201cthe recipe for growing algae,\u201d without needing to invoke vandalism.<\/p>\n<p>The pool is \u201cshallow, there\u2019s no flushing, they don\u2019t run water through it on a permanent basis,\u201d he said. \u201cThere\u2019s no mixing, because they want to keep it nice and flat, so you get a reflection.\u201d Furthermore, he said, \u201cthere\u2019s no shading anywhere to keep solar radiation out, and somebody decided to paint the bottom dark blue,\u201d even though this makes the pool retain more heat. The pool probably also uses high-nutrient water, he added.<\/p>\n<p>The president has blamed the pool\u2019s past algae problems on a change to the pool\u2019s water source made under former President Barack Obama. In 2012, the government switched from filling the pool with municipal DC water to ozone-treated water from the Tidal Basin, which is fed by the Potomac River.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe took the water from the river,\u201d Trump\u00a0said\u00a0of Obama on June 22. \u201cIt turned out to be putrid and it destroyed the whole thing. Spent over $100 million.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That total is incorrect. As we previously\u00a0wrote, the Obama-era restoration, which also\u00a0reinforced\u00a0the pool\u2019s sinking foundation and replaced its concrete bottom, cost around $35 million.<\/p>\n<p>When the reflecting pool was refilled in early June, a spokesperson for the Department of the Interior told us, it had been filled with \u201cDC Water,\u201d or municipal water. Even after the Obama-era renovations, the pool had periodically been\u00a0filled\u00a0with city drinking water when there was substantial algae in the Tidal Basin.<\/p>\n<p>Chapra said that feeding the pool from the Tidal Basin would be the \u201cworst\u201d in terms of algae, given that the Potomac River has \u201cplenty of nutrients\u201d and algae.<\/p>\n<p>However, using DC Water does not\u00a0eliminate\u00a0the potential for algae. Ashley Bair, a researcher at the water treatment company Usalco,\u00a0told\u00a0Vox that a type of phosphorus added to municipal water to form a coating on the inside of lead pipes could feed algae if the water were not treated properly. DC Water has\u00a0added\u00a0orthophosphate since 2004, according to its website, after a switch in disinfectant and a change in water chemistry caused lead to be released into the water from pipes.<\/p>\n<p>Chapra also said that regardless of water source, feces from animals and fine particulates with phosphorus in the air can add to the nutrients in an open pool. He added that he was skeptical of the ozone nanobubble technology for the project. \u201cHigh enough concentrations of ozone will break the cell walls of the algae, but that releases the nutrients back into the water, and it\u2019s not going to kill all of them,\u201d he said. Ozone also breaks down in sunlight, he added.<\/p>\n<p>Given all these factors, he said, vandalism simply \u201cwasn\u2019t the first thing that popped into my mind\u201d upon seeing the algal growth in the pool.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLike I said at the beginning, shallow, no flushing, no mixing, high-nutrient water, no shading, dark blue bottom, go figure,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=423\">At the Races: Waiting on SCOTUS<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>by Kate Yandell ANALYSIS \u2014 President Donald Trump has repeatedly blamed vandals for damaging the new blue lining of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, which is now peeling, as well as for algae in the water. But the administration has not provided evidence to back up the president\u2019s claims. Experts say the pool\u2019s ills have [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":428,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-429","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-white-house"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Trump\u2019s unsupported claims about Reflecting Pool vandalism - American Industry Review<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=429\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Trump\u2019s unsupported claims about Reflecting Pool vandalism - American Industry Review\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"by Kate Yandell ANALYSIS \u2014 President Donald Trump has repeatedly blamed vandals for damaging the new blue lining of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, which is now peeling, as well as for algae in the water. But the administration has not provided evidence to back up the president\u2019s claims. Experts say the pool\u2019s ills have [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=429\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"American Industry Review\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-26T17:11:31+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"14 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=429#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=429\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/f31b66192ea99275704b1c4c1195d2bd\"},\"headline\":\"Trump\u2019s unsupported claims about Reflecting Pool vandalism\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-26T17:11:31+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=429\"},\"wordCount\":2714,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=429#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/9b32b44d653d84e0ae22b024a0ee8fdf.jpeg\",\"articleSection\":[\"White House\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=429#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=429\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=429\",\"name\":\"Trump\u2019s unsupported claims about Reflecting Pool vandalism - American Industry Review\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=429#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=429#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/9b32b44d653d84e0ae22b024a0ee8fdf.jpeg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-26T17:11:31+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/f31b66192ea99275704b1c4c1195d2bd\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=429#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=429\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=429#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/9b32b44d653d84e0ae22b024a0ee8fdf.jpeg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/9b32b44d653d84e0ae22b024a0ee8fdf.jpeg\",\"width\":1620,\"height\":1080,\"caption\":\"UNITED STATES - JUNE 22: National Guard troops patrol the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool on Monday, June 22, 2026. The Trump administration has accused vandals of damaging the reflecting pool. (Bill Clark\\\/CQ Roll Call)\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=429#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Trump\u2019s unsupported claims about Reflecting Pool vandalism\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"American Industry Review\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/f31b66192ea99275704b1c4c1195d2bd\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Trump\u2019s unsupported claims about Reflecting Pool vandalism - American Industry Review","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=429","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Trump\u2019s unsupported claims about Reflecting Pool vandalism - American Industry Review","og_description":"by Kate Yandell ANALYSIS \u2014 President Donald Trump has repeatedly blamed vandals for damaging the new blue lining of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, which is now peeling, as well as for algae in the water. But the administration has not provided evidence to back up the president\u2019s claims. Experts say the pool\u2019s ills have [&hellip;]","og_url":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=429","og_site_name":"American Industry Review","article_published_time":"2026-06-26T17:11:31+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"14 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=429#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=429"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/#\/schema\/person\/f31b66192ea99275704b1c4c1195d2bd"},"headline":"Trump\u2019s unsupported claims about Reflecting Pool vandalism","datePublished":"2026-06-26T17:11:31+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=429"},"wordCount":2714,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=429#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/9b32b44d653d84e0ae22b024a0ee8fdf.jpeg","articleSection":["White House"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=429#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=429","url":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=429","name":"Trump\u2019s unsupported claims about Reflecting Pool vandalism - American Industry Review","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=429#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=429#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/9b32b44d653d84e0ae22b024a0ee8fdf.jpeg","datePublished":"2026-06-26T17:11:31+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/#\/schema\/person\/f31b66192ea99275704b1c4c1195d2bd"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=429#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=429"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=429#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/9b32b44d653d84e0ae22b024a0ee8fdf.jpeg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/9b32b44d653d84e0ae22b024a0ee8fdf.jpeg","width":1620,"height":1080,"caption":"UNITED STATES - JUNE 22: National Guard troops patrol the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool on Monday, June 22, 2026. The Trump administration has accused vandals of damaging the reflecting pool. (Bill Clark\/CQ Roll Call)"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=429#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Trump\u2019s unsupported claims about Reflecting Pool vandalism"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/","name":"American Industry Review","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/#\/schema\/person\/f31b66192ea99275704b1c4c1195d2bd","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/americanindustryreview.com"],"url":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/429","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=429"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/429\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/428"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=429"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=429"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=429"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}