Trump isn’t letting Pirro’s Reflecting Pool decision go quietly, makes new request

WASHINGTON, DC: Days after President Donald Trump blasted United States Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeannine Pirro for dropping the Reflecting Pool vandalism charge against former Olympian David Hearn, the president urged Pirro to revisit her decision.  

Pirro claimed the Interior Department misled her prosecutors by wrongly attributing damage to the pool lining to vandalism, while evidence showed the damage stemmed from "contractor error" and a "botched installation."

Trump wants Pirro to revisit Reflecting Pool vandalism case

"Now that people are able to see it up close, they are reporting pure VANDALISM at The Reflecting Pool," Trump wrote on Truth Social on Friday, August 7, sharing photos from a freelance photographer that allegedly showed vandalism.

The president claimed that "People were on their knees with their hands in the water at the exact location of the ‘slashes.’ Additionally, there were witnesses to the vandalism, and the flexible areas of the material were cut with a knife.

"US Attorney Jeanine Pirro should re-visit her hastily made decision, especially since it turned out that the ‘gentleman’ involved is a big player in ActBlue, a disgraceful fundraising SCAM, and is represented by a Trump deranged sleazebag Political Hack Lawyer, Norm Eisen, and crew, a group that uses ‘charity’ for political purposes which is, to the best of my knowledge, illegal."

A day after the case was dropped, Trump wrote on Truth Social "I disagree 100% with Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, on the Reflecting Pool. I don’t know what she was thinking?"

Hearn David indicted in Reflecting Pool vandalism case

Several people, including former US Olympic canoeist David Hearn was charged with felony vandalism in June 2026 for allegedly damaging the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool liner.

Hearn said authorities arrested him and held him for five hours after he reached down into the pool.

The 67-year-old canoeist revealed to The Washington Post that he had just finished a 52-mile bike ride when he noticed a "partially detached piece" of the new pool liner and "reached into the water to see what it felt like."

Speaking to reporters before boarding Air Force One, Trump on August 4 reiterated his belief that the damage to the Reflecting Pool resulted from vandalism rather than faulty construction.

He also said he still "hasn't made a decision" on whether Jeanine Pirro will remain US Attorney for the District of Columbia after she dropped the case against Hearn.

When a reporter asked whether Pirro would remain in her position as the top federal prosecutor in Washington, Trump stopped short of offering his support. After a brief pause, he said, "I haven't made a decision."