Trump defends Lincoln Memorial pool amid NYT report blaming renovation flaws, not vandalism

US President Donald Trump has hit back at the New York Times over an investigative report critical of the deteriorating condition of the newly renovated Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, published on the 25th anniversary of 9/11. Trump shared a post of US Department of the Interior on Truth Social early Sunday, which accused the Times of dedicating significant time and investigative resources to a story about a swimming pool liner on the 25th anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attack while not reporting the vandalism at the site.

The Times reported that the internal government documents and statements from the project's contractor, Atlantic Industrial Coatings, blamed design and construction error rather than vandalism. The plan reportedly used two incompatible chemicals, where the top layer reached a temperature which the compounds in the lower layer could not withstand, causing it to blister and come loose.

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The Trump administration had previously attributed the bubbling, peeling, and green algae plaguing the pool's "American flag blue" liner to deliberate acts of vandalism executed by individuals using knives or box cutters. They also arrested former Olympian David Hearn in connection with it, but the Department of Justice later dropped charges, acknowledging that the structural damage was caused by flawed renovation work rather than criminal activity.

The $16.4 million worth renovation was unveiled on June 6, but it had faced serious problems. By June 14, the blue colour of the pool turned green, which officials blamed on residual algae in the supply line. Authorities used hydrogen peroxide and ozone treatments to clear it. Then by June 18, the blue coating itself was peeling away. The Trump administration had awarded a $2.7 million contract to a Massachusetts company to try to fix the algae issue.