A National Park Service deputy director told a federal court that vandalism cut the liner in President Donald Trump’s revamped Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool using a “sharp knife or razor.” The statement was filed June 24 as litigation continues over whether
On June 9, park police were called after damage was reported to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool’s new surface. By June 24, a top National Park Service operations official was telling a federal court that the liner had been cut with what he described as “a sharp knife or razor.”
The sworn declaration came from NPS Deputy Director for Operations Frank Lands, filed with the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Lands’ statement was part of an ongoing lawsuit that argues the Trump administration illegally renovated the iconic Washington fixture.
In his declaration, Lands described the vandalism as deliberate, linked to the way the reflecting pool liner was cut. The filing. however. did not spell out how NPS officials reached the conclusion that the damage was made with a blade-like instrument. Park officials also did not immediately respond to requests for comment, including how they determined the liner was cut.
The Reflecting Pool—one of the most watched stops along Washington’s Monument Row—has become a flashpoint since Trump announced in April that the shallow pool’s bottom would be painted “American Flag Blue.” Since then. Americans watching the site have focused on how security and surveillance are used around the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool. with at least one public reaction captured around the idea that cameras could deter problems at a highly visible landmark.
The legal fight centers not only on the allegation of vandalism but on the renovation itself. Among the points cited in connection with the project are claims that the administration bypassed the typical competitive bidding process for the multi-million dollar work. and that one of the contractors involved had links to a Trump donor.
Even before the vandalism allegation, the renovation had drawn widespread scrutiny. The renovated pool quickly deteriorated, with a massive algae bloom turning the water lime green, and the new surface liner coming off in visible sheets.
Trump has repeatedly pointed to vandalism as the reason the new surface failed. publicly alleging that the pool’s new liner had come apart due to “vandalism.” Lands’ court declaration extends that claim by suggesting the method of the damage involved a sharp implement—though his filing stops short of explaining the evidence or process that led NPS to that specific conclusion.
The sequence of filings and the sharp language used by Lands—tying the damage to a “sharp knife or razor” while leaving unanswered how that determination was made—has added another layer of tension to a case already focused on how the renovation was awarded and carried out.
For now, the dispute over the Reflecting Pool sits in the courts, with park police having responded on June 9 to reported vandalism and the sworn statement landing in federal court on June 24 as the administration’s renovation decisions continue to face legal challenge.
National Park Service Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool Frank Lands vandalism razor knife U.S. District Court District of Columbia Trump renovation American Flag Blue surveillance
Razor or knife… people are wild.
So they’re saying someone did it on purpose?? But like… how do they even know it was a razor and not just the paint job being trash. Either way cameras should’ve stopped it.
Wait I thought they were painting it American flag blue, and now it got cut?? I’m confused like if they renovated the liner then wouldn’t it have been installed wrong in the first place. Court filings always leave out the key part, so I’m not buying that “sharp knife or razor” just from vibes.
This is what happens when they keep messing with stuff for politics. They say cameras and security but somehow it still gets vandalized, so like either the surveillance sucks or the renovation is cursed. Also “bypassed competitive bidding”?? That part is the real problem, not the razor story.