For the first time, President Donald Trump publicly acknowledged contractor error played a role in the peeling of the paint liner in the Reflecting Pool.
In a social media post Sunday night, Trump said the contractor rushed to complete the job before July 4 but continued to push claims of vandalism.
“As with many jobs, there was also some contractor error done by rushing the job for a July 4th opening, but it was a very small area of this massive Pool, and was relatively inconsequential, Trump said in the social media post.
After more than $14 million was spent to change the color of the Reflecting Pool, the new liner began peeling off. Trump blamed vandals, and four people were arrested, including David “Davey” Hearn, a three-time Olympic athlete who was the only person charged with a felony.
In his post Sunday, Trump continued to blame vandals for at least some of the damage, saying a National Park Service employee witnessed Hearn ripping and tugging at the coating of paint.
However, U.S. Attorney for D.C. Jeanine Pirro dismissed the charges against Hearn last week after her office concluded the damage to the reflecting pool was the result of shoddy workmanship and not vandals.
At the time of his indictment, Pirro said in no uncertain terms that Hearn was a vandal.
“He damaged the pool,” she said.
Her office filed a motion with the court seeking to dismiss the charges, writing that the damage was not caused by Hearn and others but instead was “a result of flawed installation by the contractor.” Prosecutors wrote that the Department of the Interior had not told them about the issues with the installation.
Hearn has insisted upon his innocence since the day he was arrested. He said he was riding his bike in June when he touched a piece of the coating that already was detached. He could sue the federal government.
“As you can imagine, when the most powerful people in the world say you could be going to prison for up to 10 years, make false claims about you, that’s profoundly unsettling,” Hearn’s attorney, Norman Eisen, chairman of the Democracy Defenders Fund, told News4. “But Davey Hearn is a three-time Olympian, multiple times world champion and canoeist. And he is maintaining a fighting attitude.”
Reflecting Pool fencing to remain in place
Meanwhile, the fencing around the Reflecting Pool was supposed to come down Monday, but those plans have changed.
The National Park Service put out an update, saying the fencing will remain as work on the Reflecting Pool continues. The new target date for taking it down is now Sept. 10. It’s a bit disappointing to visitors who want to stroll along the Washington landmark. All the sidewalks around the pool are off limits.
