Trump changes Reflecting Pool ‘gash’ size again, but offers no evidence

When announcing the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool had been drained again, Donald Trump doubled down on his vandalism claims, but his latest account raises fresh questions. Online, Trump said the alleged "slashes" stretched for 300 yards, after previously describing them as 250, 300 and 350 feet. This comes as photos and video of the empty pool don't appear to show any obvious signs of the massive gash he described in the pool's liner.

Donald Trump has again revised the size of the alleged "gash" he says was carved into the floor of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, while repeating claims that the landmark was vandalised last month. But the US president's latest account has raised fresh questions, with no public evidence released to support his claims.

Announcing that the Reflecting Pool had been drained once again, Trump wrote on Truth Social on Monday that workers were repairing the "scars and damage" caused by what he described as vandals using a knife or box cutter. However, Trump's latest description of the alleged damage differs significantly from his previous statements.

In his latest post, Trump claimed the "slashes" in the pool's lining stretched 300 yards. In earlier statements, he had described the damage as 250 feet, later revising the figure to 300 feet before increasing it again to 350 feet, a number he also repeated to reporters.

If Trump intended to say 300 yards, the alleged damage would measure 900 feet, roughly the length of three American football fields and three times his original claim. It is unclear whether he intended to write "yards" instead of "feet".

Despite repeatedly alleging that the pool was deliberately vandalised, the Trump administration has not released any photos or other physical evidence to substantiate the claim, despite publicly insisting said such images exist.

Media outlets who visited the site after the pool was drained reported seeing no obvious signs of the extensive damage Trump described. Washington, DC photographer Joe Flood shared images of the drained pool, where no signs of a cut in the pool was visible. Attorney Matt Rein, who also visited the site, said online that he saw no obvious signs of a large cut and that a worker told him they had not seen one either. Some social media users pointed to a long straight line visible across the drained pool as evidence of the alleged gash. However, closer photographs show that the feature is the pool's drainage channel rather than a cut in the liner.

The latest dispute is the newest setback in what has become a troubled renovation project.

Trump had ordered the Reflecting Pool to be painted "American Flag blue" ahead of the United States' 250th anniversary celebrations on July 4. But heavy algae growth quickly turned the water green, and chemicals used to kill the algae caused sections of the blue coating to chip away and float to the surface. Residents were seen retrieving flakes of blue paint from the water.

Trump has rejected suggestions the problems stemmed from the renovation itself or the contractor responsible for the work. Instead, he has blamed vandals for both contaminating the water and cutting the pool's lining.

That claim also appears to conflict with Trump's earlier remarks about the durability of the new coating. Speaking in early May, he said the material was so strong that "if you had a knife you couldn't even cut it. So strong. So powerful."