John Oliver mocks Trump’s Lincoln Memorial pool makeover as a trainwreck

Trump drained the Reflecting Pool and repainted the bottom in a shade he called “American flag blue.” John Oliver used his June 29 “Last Week Tonight” segment to attack Donald Trump’s renovation of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, calling it an “absolute trainwreck” and saying the United States was dealing with a “literal swamp of corruption” for its 250th birthday. The pool sits between the Lincoln Memorial and the World War II Memorial on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.

The work cost at least $14 million, while POLITICO put the cost at $16 million. The makeover then unraveled: the restored pool developed a lime-green algae bloom, and pieces of the new coating began peeling.

Trump has blamed vandalism for the damage without offering evidence. One man was arrested after touching already-peeling paint, while Trump said six people had been arrested and later claimed another seven had been cited. National Guard members and U.S. Park Police patrolled the area after the vandalism claims, and fencing went up near the pool ahead of Fourth of July fireworks. An Interior Department spokesperson said the body of water “was always set to be fenced off ahead of the 4th of July.”

Dead ducks were found near the pool. The Center for Biological Diversity asked the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to investigate under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, calling the site a “giant duck death trap.” City Wildlife, a local rehabilitation group, collected dead ducks and said it would perform necropsies. It collected two dead ducks from a pond adjacent to the pool and documented another dead juvenile duck nearby.

The renovation drew speculation about toxic blue-green algae and the concentrated peroxide used to kill algae in the water. Trump opened a 16-day celebration of the nation’s 250th anniversary with a political rally on June 24.