Donald Trump’s Lincoln pool project getting more expensive, and hear this – it won’t solve the problem he says it will fix

President Trump’s newest pet project, beautifying the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, has become a lightning rod for controversy. Not only have costs ballooned dramatically, but it is facing a lawsuit, and questions swirl about how the contract was awarded. The pool’s new shade of ‘American flag blue’ at such a historic site is just the latest example of the administration bypassing standard oversight in favor of rapid, direct intervention.

The total cost of this renovation has spiraled far beyond the original estimates. Trump initially suggested the project would cost $1.8 million, but the contract was set at $6.9 million. Per the New York Times, federal records indicate the price tag has now hit $13.1 million. The Interior Department added $6.2 million so that the project would be “completed at ‘Trump speed’ to ensure the iconic landmark is totally restored ahead of the 250th celebrations.”

Additionally, the administration bypassed the usual competitive bidding process for federal projects by invoking an exemption meant only for urgent situations, where delay would cause serious injury to the government. The no-bid contract was then granted to Atlantic Industrial Coatings, a company that had worked at Trump’s Virginia golf course. Interestingly, the company has never held a federal contract before, and they have never worked on a pool.

Yep, their expertise is in waterproofing highway culverts

This reflects a broader pattern of behavior where Trump has moved forward with significant changes to federal properties without seeking the required approvals. He previously paved over the Rose Garden lawn and tore down the historic East Wing of the White House without consulting oversight boards. He even erected a statue of Christopher Columbus.

Tim Whitehouse, the executive director of the watchdog group Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, noted that these renovations have “become a secretive project where the friends and business associates of the president are being rewarded with no public scrutiny.” It makes it hard to even pretend that Trump doesn’t see Washington as his own personal fiefdom.

There is a bigger problem, though. According to NY Times, the project’s paint job does not address the pool’s real, chronic issues with faulty plumbing and a failing filtration system. Tim Auerhahn, chairman of the Aquatic Council, warned that painting the pool won’t solve the algae blooms that prompted Trump’s decision in the first place. 

Without fixing the pipes, there is a very real possibility that the water will soon be obscured by green algae once again. Furthermore, Atlantic’s repairs are expected to last seven to 10 years, which is a far cry from the timeline president initially suggested.

The project reached a bizarre point on Thursday when the president visited the site. PBS reported that Trump was driven in his SUV across the new coating of the pool before stepping out to address the media. 

It is a move that likely set back the entire project. All of those cars would have put immense weight on the notoriously leaky pipes and newly renovated joints.

During this visit, Trump pushed back at a reporter who asked why he was prioritizing this. He responded by saying, “Our country is about beauty, cleanliness, safety, great people. Not a filthy capital.” 

He added, “We’re fixing up the reflecting pond to the Lincoln Memorial, the Washington Monument and you say, ‘Why are you fixing it up?’ Because you can understand dirt maybe better than I can, but I don’t allow it.”

Then there are the legal challenges. On Monday, the Cultural Landscape Foundation filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Washington to halt the painting. 

The organization argues that the administration has ignored laws requiring scrutiny of projects that alter historic landmarks. Their filing states, “every day that the resurfacing continues, the historic character of the Reflecting Pool is being further and fundamentally altered.”

The Reflecting Pool has served as a dignified backdrop for everything from the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech to major protests. By prioritizing a quick paint job over the rigorous, long-term repairs that the pool actually needs, the administration seems more concerned with aesthetics than the structural integrity of a national treasure. 

It remains to be seen if the blue paint will hold up. Although it seems more likely that the pool will revert to its familiar, algae-filled state once the summer heat sets in. 

For now, the project continues at “Trump speed,” despite the concerns of landscape architects who worry that the bright color will look jarringly out of place in the historic landscape.