Reflecting Pool contractor admits faulty repairs, not vandalism, caused damage
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Fencing at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool on Monday, Sept. 7, 2026. Photo: Aaron Schwartz/Bloomberg via Getty Images.
The contractor hired to renovate the Reflecting Pool says its repair work caused the pool's liner to peel and bubble, according to documents first reviewed by The New York Times.
Why it matters: President Trump has repeatedly blamed vandals for the pool's damage and has pushed to prosecute some of them, even after U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro dropped the cases.
Driving the news: The contractor, Atlantic Industrial Coatings, admitted that both the design and execution of the renovation were flawed, according to the Times.
- Workers didn't spray enough primer in some areas to bond the liner's layers, but the "human oversight" wasn't as big a problem as the liner's chemical mixture.
- The two chemicals the contractor combined for the liner were incompatible. The top layer got so hot that the material underneath couldn't handle the heat, causing it to blister and peel away, the documents show.
- The two chemicals are rarely mixed, so the contractor wasn't aware of the incompatibility.
- Atlantic Industrial Coatings did not immediately respond to Axios' request for comment.
What they're saying: "President Trump promised to make D.C. safe and beautiful, and he's delivering," a White House spokesperson told Axios in an emailed statement.
- "For years, the Reflecting Pool sat neglected, plagued with algae, and leaking millions of gallons of water. Fixing it was common sense. It's another example of President Trump restoring our nation's capital for the American people."
Zoom in: An Interior Department spokesperson told Axios that crews are replacing deteriorating water valves, flushing clogged pipes, sealing leaks, pressure-washing sidewalks and cleaning the pool's granite coping stones.
- They also continued to blame vandals for some of the damage to the pool, saying that "the major vandalism of long razor-blade gashes" means that Atlantic Industrial Coating is replacing "the sections of the pool damaged by vandals, who also repeatedly reached into the pool and ripped at the coating.
- "Like any major construction project...there are always parts of a project where a contractor returns to make sure the work is perfect," the statement said.
- "AIC is contractually obligated to fix the Reflecting Pool. As good stewards of taxpayer money, unlike Obama, it would be wasteful to bring in a new company to finish the job that another company is contractually obligated to remedy and is well on its way to doing so."
Zoom out: The alleged vandalism accusations drew a significant rift between Pirro and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, whom Pirro blamed for reportedly telling her office there was significant evidence of prosecutable vandalism when there was little.
- Trump blasted Pirro for dropping the charges, leading her to berate Burgum in the White House, "accusing him of misleading the president," according to the New York Times.
What we're watching: Former Olympian David Hearn, the most high-profile American charged with damaging the pool, had his case dropped in July.
- A D.C. federal judge is now weighing whether to dismiss the case with prejudice — meaning the government could never charge him in this case again.
Editor's note: This story has been updated with additional information throughout.
Go deeper: Reflecting Pool repairs become personal for Trump
