Greenwater Services – The head of the company that owns the firm responsible for part of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool renovation pleaded guilty to bribing former Rep. James A. Traficant Jr., according to a report. The development lands amid visible problems at the pool Trum
The Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool—something President Donald Trump repeatedly singled out and personally pressed for renovation—has been drawing fresh scrutiny for reasons that go beyond aesthetics.
A company tied to the work has now come under legal pressure. The head of the company that owns the firm responsible for part of the renovation pleaded guilty to bribing a congressman, The New York Times reported on Thursday night.
In recent months, Trump fixated on the Reflecting Pool and took a personal interest in seeing it renovated. He frequently brought up the topic during press gaggles, even when reporters had not asked about it. Once the job was completed, the pool did not stay pristine. It has been plagued by algae blooms. and this week passersby began noticing paint starting to peel away from the bottom. The pool’s water has also taken on a distinct green hue rather than the American flag blue Trump chose for the bottom.
The renovation included Trump awarding a $1.7 million no-bid contract to an Ohio company to install a water purification system. The company’s name is Greenwater Services.
The Times reported that Greenwater Services is owned by the J.J. Cafaro Trust, helmed by John J. Cafaro, a Trump donor and one of the president’s Mar-a-Lago neighbors. The report said Cafaro’s water purification company lists Cafaro’s mansion in Palm Beach as its address in Florida corporate records. It also added that Cafaro’s daughter served as a Democratic Ohio state senator from 2007 to 2016. and that he has donated money to Republicans and Democrats.
The bribery plea ties back to Rep. James A. Traficant Jr., the former congressman from Ohio. The Times reported that one of the Democrats Cafaro “donated” money to was Traficant—by bribing him. Cafaro’s family business originally focused on developing shopping centers, before he branched into other industries including aerospace. The report states Cafaro pleaded guilty in 2001 to conspiracy to bribe Representative James A. Traficant Jr., a Democrat of Ohio, and later testified against Traficant.
Traficant’s political career ended in disgrace. In 2001, the U.S. House of Representatives expelled Traficant. Until former Rep. George Santos (R-NY) in 2023, Traficant was the most recent member to be expelled. Traficant was convicted of bribery and racketeering in 2002 and was released in 2009 before dying in 2014.
He was known both for theatrics and for trouble: the report notes his infamous ridiculous hairdo and his one-minute floor speeches that had nothing to do with House business—alongside the crimes.
For a renovation that Trump championed and celebrated. the visible deterioration at the pool has added pressure at a sensitive time. Algae has already changed the look of the water. paint has begun peeling from the bottom. and the green tint clashes with the American flag blue Trump selected. Now the legal case involving the contractor’s ownership—centered on a guilty plea tied to bribery of a former congressman—has moved the story from water quality and surface repair to the political connections behind the work.
Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool renovation Greenwater Services J.J. Cafaro Trust John J. Cafaro Donald Trump no-bid contract algae blooms paint peeling James Traficant bribery guilty plea