A preservation group has filed a lawsuit over President Trump’s renovations to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.
In an April video shared on Truth Social, President Trump said contractors “scrubbed the surface of the existing granite that had been there since 1922, we then grouted all of the granite, fixed it up, took about two weeks, and now we have a nice, clean surface on which we’re putting [an] industrial-grade swimming pool topping.”
He said the color chosen is “American flag blue,” which he said will “last for 40 or 50 years, there will be no leaks, there will be no anything, it’ll look gorgeous, beautiful, so it’s a story in business.”
The Cultural Landscape Foundation and its founder, Charles Birnbaum, are now arguing that the blue paint alters the site’s “historic character.”
“The dark grey, achromatic basin was not incidental to the design. It was the design,” the lawsuit states. “The 1999 National Park Service Cultural Landscape Report for the Lincoln Memorial Grounds specifically identifies the dark-tiled basin as a character-defining feature of the historic landscape, noting that ‘the dark color of the tile created the illusion of greater depth and a more profound reflection.'”
“The vivid blue coating will fundamentally alter the visual and experiential character of the pool and the broader Lincoln Memorial Grounds landscape,” the group argued. “The new coloration will cause the pool to resemble a large swimming pool rather than the reflective civic landscape it was designed to be, distorting the experience of the site for the millions of visitors who come to it each year.”
The project aligns with President Trump’s March 2025 order to beautify Washington D.C. “As the capital city of the greatest Nation in the history of the world, it should showcase beautiful, clean, and safe public spaces,” it reads. “America’s capital must be a place in which residents, commuters, and tourists feel safe at all hours, including on public transit. Its highways, boulevards, and parks should be clean, well-kept, and pleasant. Its monuments, museums, and buildings should reflect and inspire awe and appreciation for our Nation’s strength, greatness, and heritage. Our citizens deserve nothing less.”
