President Donald Trump ordered the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool in Washington, D.C., to be drained and painted "American flag blue" as part of a beautification project completed between June 10 and 15, 2026 [1, 2]. The pool, located on the National Mall and known as the site where Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his 1963 "I Have a Dream" speech, was the focus of a multimillion-dollar restoration effort that stirred controversy due to no-competition contracts awarded to a company linked to Trump golf clubs [1, 2].
Just days after the repainting was finished, hot weather over the weekend before June 17 triggered an algae bloom in the pool, turning its water a swampy green instead of the intended blue [2]. Visitors expressed mixed reactions to the unexpected change. Forty-three-year-old tourist Farrah Lu said, "Can you see it in my photos? Oh well, I’ll just use a filter to hide the algae," while another visitor, Ravi Desai, remarked, "When I thought reflecting pool, I would see some reflection of the monument on the pool. That’s what the name says, so that didn’t meet my expectation. But overall, I still find it very beautiful. And we’re just tourists here." [1, 2]
Local resident Nicole Leguillow, 66, criticized the expense, saying, "That money could have been spent much more wisely on things people in this country need" [2]. The National Park Service responded by treating the pool water with nanobubble ozone technology and hydrogen peroxide to eradicate the algae bloom, applying these measures by June 17 [2].
The treatment aims to restore the pool’s appearance in the coming days. Officials have not announced a completion date but continue monitoring water quality and visitor feedback as cleaning efforts proceed.
