Donald Trump’s story about the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool has sprung more leaks than the troubled landmark itself.
Prosecutors poked holes in his version of events and who caused the damage. An engineer’s warning weakened it. And now repeated videos of workers peeling up loose blue sealant made it even harder to defend.
Still, the president’s allies keep trying to patch the narrative instead of explaining the construction failure.
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum became the latest administration official to grab the political glue Monday.
During an appearance an Aug. 31 on Fox Business, he back Trump’s claim about the vandals responsible for the damage.
Like Trump, Burgum also claimed there was “clear evidence,” although he did not share any of it. He said severely clogged supply valves need replacing to help combat algae buildup.
“The blue liner, 99.7 percent of the liner, was done perfectly. There was vandalism in spite of what everybody says,” Burgum told “Mornings with Maria” host Maria Bartiromo. “The clear evidence of that, that there was vandalism.”
He added, “We’re on track to have the Reflecting Pool looking better than ever, but again kudos to president Trump.”
Burgum claims Trump won’t stop until it’s “perfect.”
His comments did little to reassure the public about Trump renovation project, calling both men, “Complete Idiots.”
“Really now? Can you prove that in court? Or is the ‘vandalism’ the presidential motorcade driving through the reflecting pool what you’re referencing?” one Daily Beast reader asked.
Doug Burgum is on Fox still whining about the fake vandalism to the Reflecting Pool pic.twitter.com/O0X7hHqMcB
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) August 31, 2026
Another demanded, “Take 3 lie detector tests please.”
Some people believed Trump’s vehicles damaged the Reflecting Pool when he drove them over it in May
One perosn tweeted, “This dumb f*** should have used Flex Seal instead of shady Trump affiliated no bid contractors.”
“Again, driving Trump’s motorcade across the recently (and shoddily) completed resurfacing of the pool bottom before it was refilled with water had NO effect whatsoever. Nah, couldn’t have. Funny how conveniently that’s been forgotten about and never mentioned.
The secretary’s unsupported claim marks another setback for Trump’s attempt to blame vandals for the embarrassing failure of his highly promoted renovation.
Federal prosecutors previously concluded that construction problems likely caused the liner to peel. As a result, they dropped the felony case against former Olympic canoeist David Hearn after government records created serious doubt about his culpability.
Police detained Hearn on June 19 after seeing him lift an already detached section of liner. His defense later uncovered “evidence” that helped prevent police from holding him.
Documents showed a National Park Service engineer warned Interior Department officials on June 11 that the coating was peeling. Crews reportedly refilled the pool before the sealant had enough time to cure.
Workers drained the pool a month later in July, exposing the debris and garbage at the bottom of the basin. However, no “350-foot gash” or cut as Trump claimed was found.
U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro later dropped the charges. Trump instantly went into attack mode calling the decision “stupid” and a “terrible mistake.”
He and his administration still stand by the claims that vandals used knives to cut a massive gash into the liner.
“The only vandal in this case, sits in our white house and is as incompetent as he is corrupt,” another Daily Beast commenter wrote.
Q: Are the contractors who did the initial work for the reflecting pool to blame for the condition of it?
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) June 22, 2026
TRUMP: No no. We had vandalism. They went in there with a knife. pic.twitter.com/YasPBjP9nX
Another person added, “He can double down, triple down but all it does it makes him is look the tRump fool twice or more.”
Recent footage from the repair site didn’t do Burgum’s defense any favors.
Workers recorded themselves pulling up chunks of blue sealant while power-washing the drained basin. The material surrendered without a knife, crowbar, or mysterious gang of monument marauders.
Trump’s team may eventually unveil Burgum’s mysterious evidence. Until then, officials ask Americans to ignore prosecutors, engineering warnings and blue sealant peeling like sunburned skin.
