Trump is falsely claiming that people have vandalized the reflecting pool by dumping algae and chemicals in the water and ripping up the liner. Of course, none of that is true.
A 67-year old man on a bicycle who had no tools in his hands, was arrested after he picked up a piece of debris from Trump’s BOTCHED PROJECT. It was part of the liner paint that had already been peeling. He was likely curious as to why it was so flimsy. He didn’t vandalize anything but was still charged. Another man got a citation for merely putting his hand into the pool. Another false claim of sabotage. The man had no tools and was not even wet.
“Man arrested for vandalizing Lincoln Reflecting Pool,” conservative journalist Emily Miller wrote in a Facebook post, describing the incident Friday. “He grabbed the hose that female National Park Service workers were using to clear the algae.” The Post said that while Miller declined to speak on the record, she did confirm the video over a text when reached Saturday.
David Hearn, a three-time Olympian who retired in 2002 from competing in the canoe slalom, refuted the claims made by Miller, saying he reached in to feel the liner.
“I reached in there, and I was able to grab the end of that flapping piece, the already peeling piece,” Hearn told the newspaper. “It was still attached to the bottom. I didn’t remove anything.”
He didn’t do anything different than what reporters who are covering the issue are doing… Jonathan Karl (@jonkarl) was seen in this video lifting up a piece of debris to show it to viewers. Are they going to charge him with vandalism too?
New problems have emerged with the newly renovated Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool in Washington, D.C., where algae has turned the water green and “American Flag Blue” paint is peeling from the bottom. @jonkarl reports. pic.twitter.com/F49BUQVKUE
— Good Morning America (@GMA) June 19, 2026
This administration is simply nuts.