On the eve of the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States in Washington, a major national landmark, the Reflecting Pool, has fallen into terrible disrepair. Donald Trump administration blames saboteurs; Experts suggest that the reason is poor-quality restoration. Democrats are demanding an explanation from the government. We talk about the main American scandal of recent weeks.
The Reflecting Pool is one of the most iconic landmarks in Washington, DC. It is a narrow, rectangular pond measuring 619 x 51 metres, extending from the Washington Monument to the Lincoln Memorial.
The pool appeared in the American capital in 1922. Many memorable events in American history took place near the reservoir – for example, it was here in 1963 that Martin Luther King gave his famous “I have a dream” speech against segregation to demonstrators. The site is constantly featured in Hollywood films, from Forrest Gump to Marvel’s Spider-Man. The pool constantly causes problems for the authorities.
In 2009-2012 it was restored and the tiled bottom was replaced with concrete. Just a few weeks after the work was completed, the pond was completely filled with algae. I had to drain it and clean the bowl. A year later, the pool was damaged by construction workers erecting a World War II memorial, so another restoration had to begin in 2015.
Ten years later, Donald Trump drew attention to the landmark. In the fall of 2025, Pres subscriber Video on his social network Truth Social: The footage shows dirty pond water filled with garbage and algae. “I will fix it,” Trump wrote. – Look carefully, you won’t have long to see this filth and incompetence [моего предшественника] “Biden.”
New renovations begin in the spring of 2026 — in anticipation of the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States, which the country will celebrate on the Fourth of July. Trump promised that the bottom of the pool would be lined with “the finest, most modern fabric” and painted dark blue, the color of the star field on the American flag. “You’ll have a beautiful, gorgeous reflecting pool — just the way it should be. It’ll be so much better than ever.”
Work lasted from April to June and cost at least $14 million. Once that was done, the pond turned green with algae — just like it had in 2012 — and the paint began to peel. Soon in the pool Found Three Dead Ducks: Some of the algae may have been toxic. next to It turns outThe installation of the $1.7 million filtration system was commissioned without a bid to Green Water Solutions, whose owner John Jay Cafaro donated money to Trump’s 2020 campaign.
However, the president had an explanation for the failure: according to his account, the complex had been damaged by vandals. Trump AnnounceThat the attackers cut the coating with a utility knife and then tore it off with their hands (the tank is very shallow and no more than a meter deep – this is technically possible). In addition, they allegedly poured chemicals into the swimming pool.
According to the president, he has pictures that confirm his story and will present them to the court. However, the only published evidence of sabotage remains unclear so far video Through a surveillance camera released by the US National Park Service, a man can be seen dipping his hand into the water.
Experts say that the tank, most likely, did not suffer from vandals, but from poor-quality restoration. For example, billiards specialist Steve Goodall in commentary for PBS NotesThe layer on the bottom is very difficult to cut with a knife – but it is very easy to make a mistake when applying it. Biochemist Greg Boyer suggests that the water in the pool may have been warmer than usual due to the new dark blue color of the bottom, which likely led to algae growth.
However, on June 25, the US Department of the Interior male About the arrest of seven people: all of them suspected of sabotage. And the National Park Service on the same day certainThat the paint had been cut with something sharp.
Two Democratic senators, Jeff Merkley and Martin Heinrich, are already there student From the Ministry of Interior explaining why the project failed and why companies were attracted to it without a tender.
“This is a perfect metaphor – it seems there will never be any more.” books About the Algae-Infested Mirror Pond by The Atlantic columnist Alexandra Petrie.