After issues surfaced at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool in Washington, D.C., following U.S. President Donald Trump's renovations in spring 2026, there were plausible explanations for algae blooming and paint peeling.
Trump, however, claimed any problems with the reflecting pool were due to vandalism, including a "gash" that the president first described on Truth Social as 250 feet, then 300 feet and then "numerous slashes over a very long 350 foot length."
(Truth Social user @realDonaldTrump)
Snopes readers contacted us and searched the site looking to see whether Trump's claim of vandalism was true.
We reached out to the White House and the Interior Department, which is in charge of maintaining the National Mall, for comment on the matter, but had not heard back at the time of publication.
The president provided no evidence to support his claim, though he later claimed there were images showing the vandalism. (No such images have surfaced, as of this publication.)
Meanwhile, The Washington Post, which sent reporters to observe and examine the pool, reported that they couldn't find any signs of vandalism.
But even though there's no evidence to support Trump's assertion and some evidence contradicting it, Snopes can't rate the president's claim that vandals were to blame for the issues at the reflecting pool.
First, we were unable to independently verify any evidence that showed there had definitively been no vandalism. And conversely, we also couldn't rule out the possibility that someone actually had vandalized the reflecting pool since the renovations, despite the White House not producing any evidence of such.
Trump said in a June 23 post on Truth Social that six people had been arrested and seven others cited in connection with damage to the reflecting pool. However, those charges don't constitute guilt without a conviction. Reports named David Hearn, a former U.S. Olympian, as one of the people arrested, though there was no information immediately available about the other five.
Snopes will update this report should we learn more.
How did we get here?
The Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool has been around for just over 100 years and has often faced maintenance challenges. That led to a full reconstruction during former President Barack Obama's administration that cost around $35 million.
Even that didn't solve the issues though, and algae continued to plague the reflecting pool. Its shallow depth and large surface area create nearly perfect conditions for algal growth.
A second round of renovations was in the planning stages during Trump's first term and under former President Joe Biden, according to The New York Times, but the price tag was too high. The Trump administration's attempt to do those repairs in advance of the United States' 250th birthday has not gone to plan.
First, there was controversy over the administration bypassing the standard bidding process when awarding its contracts. Then, there was talk about the decision to paint the bottom of the pool, which for the last 100 years had been gray, a shade dubbed "American Flag Blue."
The algae problem didn't stop after the renovations were complete, and the pool quickly turned green. Park service workers poured jugs of hydrogen peroxide into the water and began cleaning out the algae.
Then, the blue paint applied to the pool's bottom began peeling off, and that's where the vandalism claim seems to have originated.
According to the administration, the pool will have to be drained and refilled again.
There's no evidence that it's vandalism
Again, Trump provided no evidence to support his vandalism claims.
He first claimed the alleged gash in the bottom of the pool, which he claimed was made by a knife, was 250 feet long. A day later, he called it 300 feet. Then it was 350 feet and became multiple slashes across that longer distance.
The Washington Post reported Trump said that officials had pictures of the damage, but the paper received no reply about the photos from the Interior Department. Neither did Snopes.
Meanwhile, Post reporters sent to inspect the pool for signs of vandalism found none. Neither could at least eight officers sent to patrol the site, according to the newspaper.
Trump also said in his June 23 post on Truth Social that
One of the people arrested was a former Team USA Olympian, David Hearn, according to The Washington Post. Snopes could not find any details about the other arrests.
"I didn't vandalize anything," Hearn told the Post. "I didn't destroy or break or peel anything. By the time I realized what was going on, I was being put in handcuffs."
A Reuters photographer also captured an image of a U.S. Park Police officer citing a 17-year old for reportedly taking a piece of paint from the pool. (Snopes was unable to confirm any details about that incident.)
Trump also claimed that "chemicals have been illegally placed in the water." He did not say what those chemicals were.
Snopes previously noted that hydrogen peroxide, the chemical that workers poured into the reflecting pool to kill the algae, can also be used as a paint remover, though it wasn't clear whether amount of hydrogen peroxide used was enough to potentially cause the paint to peel.
The administration has not provided any explanation beyond vandalism to explain the damage.
For further reading, Snopes disproved a claim suggesting that "antifa operatives" had been arrested for dumping algae into the reflecting pool and investigated a rumor that Trump's motorcade had driven through the newly painted pool.