WASHINGTON — Armed with surveillance cameras, floodlights, and National Guard patrols, federal authorities have locked down the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool following a costly renovation that has been plagued by green algae and peeling paint.
Soldiers move through the area around the roughly 2,000-foot-long pool on Washington’s National Mall in small groups of three and four. Solar-powered light towers keep the site lit after dark, and about a half-dozen mobile security stations equipped with cameras are positioned around the perimeter.
The heightened security follows a $14.7 million overhaul of the Reflecting Pool. President Trump has pointed the finger at nighttime saboteurs for the project’s problems, though he has offered no evidence to back up those claims. Algae growth has historically been a recurring issue at the pool.
The heavy presence made an impression on Mary Jane Willard, a tourist visiting from Seattle, Washington. “It’s very sad to come here and see all the fences, to see all the National Guard here, to see all the cameras,” Willard said Wednesday. “It just shouldn’t be here.”
Three weeks ago, the Trump administration announced the completion of a project to repaint the iconic pool, which runs from the Lincoln Memorial nearly to the Washington Monument. The new color was described as “American flag blue” in honor of the 250th anniversary of U.S. independence on July 4.
Since then, the pool has been hit with a wave of problems — most visibly, blooms of green algae that have turned the water a bright green, along with chunks of blue paint flaking off the bottom.
With the National Mall set to host major 250th anniversary events in just days, the Reflecting Pool has drawn national attention as a flashpoint between the administration’s claims and the physical reality visitors are seeing firsthand.
Trump has alleged — without providing supporting evidence — that vandals carved a gash either 250 or 350 feet long into the pool, causing the paint damage, and poured chemicals into the water to trigger the algae bloom. When reporters pressed him Monday on the absence of proof, Trump responded, “at the right time, you’ll see it. You’ll see it in court.”
The Department of the Interior announced via social media Tuesday that six individuals have been arrested on alleged vandalism charges at the Reflecting Pool, with seven others issued federal citations. The department also said it is looking into the “gash” Trump described, though no evidence has been made public to support that claim.
Neither the Department of the Interior nor the U.S. Park Police has released the names of those arrested or the specific charges they face. Both agencies declined to respond to a request for comment Wednesday.
A review of local and federal court records shows no recent cases tied to vandalism at the Reflecting Pool. Those arrested may not appear in Washington, D.C. court records unless the U.S. Attorney’s Office decides to pursue charges locally.
U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro, a Trump ally, said in a Fox News interview that aired Sunday that those charged “will face the criminal justice system.”
Among those arrested was former U.S. Olympic cyclist David Hearn. Video shared on social media by conservative journalist Emily Miller showed Hearn, who had been riding his bicycle near the pool, being stopped by National Guard troops and later placed in handcuffs by police.
In an interview with The Washington Post, Hearn denied damaging or taking any property, but acknowledged he reached into the pool and picked up a piece of the pool liner that was already coming loose.
His attorney, Norm Eisen, who has been involved in multiple lawsuits against the Trump administration, issued a statement saying: “Treating ordinary conduct as criminal diverts attention from the real questions of how this project was managed. Using the criminal justice system to target innocent people as a form of distraction is textbook authoritarian behavior.”
Hearn is scheduled to appear in Washington, D.C. court on July 9.
Despite the visible security presence, the mood around the Reflecting Pool was largely calm Wednesday as visitors took in a sunny summer morning on the Mall. “I came down to check it out for myself, but I actually think I was expecting something a little different. It looks pretty good to me,” said Joanna Walling, visiting from Merritt Island, Florida. “It doesn’t look like anyone’s out here vandalizing today.”
