President Donald Trump on Saturday tried to explain why the $14-million-plus rehabilitation project he launched for the nation’s 250th anniversary had backfired, blaming what he called vandalism at the Reflecting Pool and claiming federal authorities had made “multiple arrests.” The pool, which he said his predecessors had allowed to turn algae-stained green, was supposed to be lined with “American flag blue” so it would better reflect the Washington Monument. Instead, after the new pool was unveiled, its blue tinge quickly became a familiar green, workers treated it with chemicals to kill the algae, and the painted blue lining on the bottom began to peel.
Who Pays for the Bosses’ Showcase
The project was sold as a patriotic makeover for a national monument, but the result was a public embarrassment managed through claims of sabotage and arrests. Trump posted Friday night on his social media site, “We’ve had some real problems with Vandalism at the beautiful Reflecting Pool,” adding, “Just like three days ago, they destroyed the grass outside of the Pool, they’ve also done everything possible to hurt the inside surface that was just installed.” He offered no details to substantiate the claim. The agencies responsible for law enforcement and upkeep on the National Mall — the U.S. Park Police, National Park Service and Interior Department — did not respond to requests for comment.
Trump later posted that Park Police “have arrested multiple individuals for vandalizing our Nations magnificent Reflecting Poll,” later correcting his spelling to “Pool.” He also wrote, “Who would do such a thing? These are very serious crimes having to do with the destruction of National Monuments. Years in jail!” The language was less explanation than performance: a top-down attempt to turn a failed public project into a morality play about enemies of “our” monuments.
The People at the Bottom Get Detained
One of the people arrested was David Hearn, 67, of Bethesda, Maryland, who owned a company that made composite used to build watercraft. Hearn said he stopped by the pool during his 64-mile bike ride Friday to see what was going on. A former Olympic canoe racer, he told The Associated Press that he reached into the pool because he wanted to examine the peeling new coating. He said he briefly touched a chunk that was still attached to the side of the pool, then let go shortly after a park worker told him to.
Hearn said he was then detained by National Guard troops and Park Police for five hours before being released Friday night. “I’m a curious citizen,” Hearn said in a telephone interview. “I reached down to see what it felt like. It was very rubbery.” The Washington Post first reported Hearn’s arrest, and Hearn said he has a date to appear in court next month and is looking for legal help.
What the Surface Couldn’t Hide
Even if someone pulled ribbons of paint from the side of the pool, it would not explain the clouds of algae in green water and swaths of loose blue paint detached from the bottom. That detail sits at the center of the mess: the project failed on its own terms, and the response was to reach for accusations rather than accountability.
Trump said something nefarious had been going on at the scene, posting, “No different than the chemicals that were used on the National Mall, they used something similar in the Reflecting Pool to try to destroy and demean our beautiful work.” That was an apparent reference to the discovery of large numbers etched in discolored grass on the National Mall the week before: “86 47.” Authorities said the numbers could have been meant as a threat to Trump, the 47th president. The number 86 can be slang for “getting rid of.” They are investigating.
Trump’s claims came after days of negative attention to the state of the pool, which drew television cameras and curious onlookers. The spectacle was meant to project control and grandeur; instead it exposed the fragility of a costly public display, the machinery of enforcement around it, and the ease with which ordinary curiosity can be treated like a crime.