Trump's $14M Reflecting Pool Renovation Ends in Arrests

What You Should Know

A $14 million renovation of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, championed by President Trump ahead of the country’s 250th anniversary, has turned into one of the summer’s odder Washington spectacles: an algae bloom, peeling paint, a presidential social media campaign accusing citizens of vandalism, and the arrest of a three-time U.S. Olympian who says he was only checking whether the new liner felt rubbery.

From “American Flag Blue” to Algae Green

Trump pushed for the renovation to fix a pool he said had “turned an algae-stained green” under past administrations, promising a new “American flag blue” liner that would better reflect the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial. Within weeks of the project’s completion, the water had turned green again, and the new blue lining began peeling from the pool floor - prompting workers to treat the water with chemicals and triggering the chain of events that followed.

Trump posted about the setback directly. “We’ve had some real problems with Vandalism at the beautiful Reflecting Pool,” he wrote on his social media platform, saying citizens had “destroyed the grass” nearby and damaged the new surface. “What these terrible Vandals have done is a true affront to both Presidents George Washington and Abraham Lincoln.” Days later, he announced that federal authorities had arrested multiple people in connection with the alleged damage.

Six Arrests, One Ex-Olympian

Among those arrested was David Hearn, 67, a three-time U.S. Olympic canoe slalom racer who competed at the 1992, 1996 and 2000 Games. Hearn says he stopped at the pool during a 52-mile bike ride to examine the new coating after noticing a piece of liner had come loose. “I reached in there, and I was able to grab the end of that flapping piece, the already peeling piece,” he told The Washington Post. “It was still attached to the bottom. I didn’t remove anything.” U.S. Park Police detained him for nearly five hours before releasing him that night.

Hearn was charged with misdemeanor destruction of government property, punishable by up to a year in jail or a fine of up to $100,000 if the alleged damage exceeded $100. He has hired attorney Norm Eisen and says he intends to fight the charge. “I feel like I was targeted and I’m feeling singled out - definitely,” Hearn told Newsweek, adding that he believes he may be the only one of the six arrested or cited whose name has become public.

A Fight That’s Headed to Court

Eisen has framed the prosecution as a distraction from the renovation’s underlying problems rather than a legitimate response to vandalism. “Treating ordinary conduct as criminal diverts attention from the real questions of how this project was managed, including its corrupt no-bid contracting process,” Eisen said in a statement. Hearn is scheduled to appear in D.C. Superior Court on July 9, where prosecutors will need to establish that his actions caused measurable damage - the same renovation that, weeks after its unveiling, is still fighting algae on its own.

References: Who is Olympic canoeist David Hearn? Man accused of vandalizing Reflecting Pool | Ex-Olympian on arrest at Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool: ‘I was targeted’