Top Trump aide contradicts him over Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool algae cause
Source: The Independent
Sunday 05 July 2026 13:46 EDT
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."
Read more: https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/us-politics/lincoln-memorial-reflecting-pool-doug-burgum-trump-b3009294.html
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