this post was submitted on 26 Jun 2026
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Firm that worked on past Reflecting Pool renovation passed on Trump project after deeming it ‘unfeasible’ (www.cnn.com)
submitted 6 days ago by MicroWave@lemmy.world to c/news@lemmy.world
56 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

Several months before blue strips started floating to the surface of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, a company involved in its last renovation more than 15 years ago was approached with an opportunity to do this remodel as well. But the company said no.

Specifically, it balked at two requirements – the Trump administration wanted it done by July 4, and the pool bottom had to be blue, according to two employees with the New Jersey-based Sika Corporation, which provided the concrete construction and sealing products for a 2010 renovation project to the Reflecting Pool.

According to the two employees, who spoke to CNN on the condition they not be identified, both demands made the job “unfeasible.”

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[–] FuglyDuck@lemmy.world 120 points 6 days ago (4 children)

the time delay made it unfeasible because to paint something - even if it's polyurethane based or epoxy based- you have to dry it out first. otherwise the moisture does bad things. (aka, causes it to not adhere properly.)(aka causes it to flake off.)

It's rather like painting over wet drywall mud.

The "it must be blue" because blue absorbs more light than white- and that caused the massive algae bloom.

But Trump is a moron who can't comprehend just how fucking stupid he is, or that he's not the smartest person in the room; so of course he gave it to his buddy who was happy to do it for a "small" bonus, even though that guy is at least as stupid as Trump is.

[–] EvilHankVenture@lemmy.world 16 points 6 days ago (4 children)

I'd think you'd want the bottom to be black, so that it reflects the surroundings instead of being visible. You say the blue color caused the algae bloom by absorbing more light, is that a temperature thing? I would think absorbing more light would leave less for photosynthesis. I thought the algae bloom was caused by not maintaining the filtration system.

It's classic Trump, slap a coat of paint on a problem instead of fixing the rot underneath. Change the aesthetics while destroying the purpose of it. I'm just amazed he didn't paint it gold.

[–] fulcrummed@lemmy.world 24 points 6 days ago

The impact of the blue (Or any dark ) paint was that it absorbs more radiation from sunlight, increasing the temperature of the water in the pool. It’s this temperature increase which gives rise to the algal bloom. Theoretically painting it black would have been even worse.

[–] Thebeardedsinglemalt@lemmy.world 24 points 6 days ago

slap a coat of paint on a problem instead of fixing the rot underneath.

I think you just described why he wears orange makeup everyday

[–] dogslayeggs@lemmy.world 5 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

Obama painted the bottom ~~black~~ grey for the better reflection.

[–] SatansMaggotyCumFart@piefed.world 3 points 5 days ago (1 children)

I don't see why they just don't replace with water with a blue mirror for a real good reflection.

[–] fartographer@lemmy.world 3 points 5 days ago

Preferably a parabolic one that automatically focuses sunlight at StarLink satellites

[–] Donjuanme@lemmy.world 6 points 5 days ago (5 children)

And apparently they drove on it, like an entire motorcade

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[–] falynns@lemmy.world 6 points 5 days ago (13 children)

They're too stupid to understand bodies of water are blue because they reflect the sky. Typical failure to grasp a simple idea by the a profoundly stupid and incurious child rapist.

[–] Bytemeister@lemmy.world 6 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

... That isn't why water is blue though...

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[–] socsa@piefed.social 3 points 5 days ago

You also usually need special procedures if you can't spray it all in one go. Spraying more solvents on top of bonded coatings will absolutely disrupt the bond. It also might not bond to itself very well.

[–] homesweethomeMrL@lemmy.world 86 points 5 days ago (2 children)

Online commentators have also speculated that the bottom of the pool may have been affected by the presence of heavy equipment and trucks — and a presidential motorcade that drove through at one point — shortly after the coating was applied.

Ravi Kurani, President of Standard Water Corp, an industrial technology company, told CNN he would never recommend driving cars out onto a pool surface, especially when renovations are being done.

“It’s like you’re putting flooring on your kitchen floor and then you’re take a really heavy tractor on top of it – it’s going to mess it up a little bit.”

lol

[–] magnetosphere@fedia.io 51 points 5 days ago (2 children)

Never heard about the motorcade thing until I read the story. That’s not just everyday stupidity - that’s a whole new level of moronic.

[–] mcv@lemmy.zip 30 points 5 days ago (1 children)

I'd heard about it and seen the photos. If it was indeed vandalized, these are the vandals. I hope they get arrested soon. They've got a long record of destroying things and need to be stopped.

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[–] skozzii@lemmy.ca 7 points 5 days ago

Dude can't even walk 100 yards.

[–] MalReynolds@slrpnk.net 50 points 6 days ago (3 children)

So, in what way is this not a distraction from child rape and mass murder from starting pointless wars (to distract from child rape) ?

Back to basics ppl, unconscionable abuse and straight up murder, or, a water feature in Washington.

[–] lividweasel@lemmy.world 14 points 6 days ago

Unconscionable abuse and straight up murder, and, a water feature in Washington.

[–] kandoh@reddthat.com 10 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago) (1 children)

You can talk about all three just fine. Not only do Republicans love a pedophile, but they also love an incompetent and corrupt pedophile.

The owner of the Greenwater company is also in the Epstein files so it all ties together nicely.

[–] ayyy@sh.itjust.works 2 points 5 days ago (1 children)

The owner of the Greenwater company is also in the Epstein files so it all ties together nicely.

This is simply a lie, please be intellectually honest in such important matters. The closest link is that the pool guy’s dad hired the same law firm as Epstein once.

[–] kandoh@reddthat.com 1 points 3 days ago

It's an email where Epstein expresses interest in getting a case against the Greenwater guy dropped

[–] prole@lemmy.blahaj.zone 1 points 5 days ago

Yeah I agree that this is a distraction from far more serious shit.

Unlike many other times when the thing people claim is a distraction is in itself as serious as a heart attack.

Yet I don't see any "NOW where's the Epstein files" meme here. It's like they purposely only post it in posts about serious issues.

[–] tigermountain@lemmy.world 10 points 5 days ago

Wait, people were driving on the reflecting pool just after the bottom was painted blue?

[–] taco@anarchist.nexus 30 points 6 days ago (1 children)

could further enflame mounting criticism that the project was rushed and potentially improperly completed.

Potentially?

We were promised a result that "will last for at least 50 years" and "if you had a knife, you couldn't even cut it" that didn't make it a month. This situation is my current litmus test to determine if I'm interacting with a propaganda bot or not. This job being improperly completed is potentially the most certain fact in the news today.

[–] prole@lemmy.blahaj.zone 1 points 5 days ago

We knew it before the work even began.

[–] Snapz@lemmy.world 9 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

His upcoming appearance in front of the pool (because milli vanili canceled and are dead) will be at 9pm for... important secret president reasons.

Also just unrelated fact to share because I like to be helpful, sunset time in Washington, D.C. on July 4, 2026 is 8:34 PM.

[–] BarneyPiccolo@lemmy.today 18 points 6 days ago (1 children)

Probably objected to the requirement to kick back half the project's funding to Trump.

[–] Serinus@lemmy.world 5 points 6 days ago (2 children)

Trump probably has all the kickback he needs from the Iran deal.

[–] impairedimperator@lemmy.zip 7 points 5 days ago (1 children)

The point of a game of monopoly isn't to have a comfortable cushion of cash, the point is to drive everyone else into abject poverty and own the board.

[–] Serinus@lemmy.world 3 points 5 days ago (1 children)

Even so, part of $14m is a rounding error after his other grifting. Doesn't quite compare to bouncing the stock market every other week or the $300b Iran deal or the bribe lawsuits that the media companies had to get the judge to not dismiss so they could "settle".

Imagine begging a judge to not let you win a case.

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[–] magnetosphere@fedia.io 13 points 5 days ago (1 children)

Sika Corp. did not reply to CNN’s request for comment.

They (wisely) turned down the job, so why would they comment now? Why did CNN even ask? I’m sure that whoever made the ultimate decision to pass on Trump’s little fiasco is smiling.

[–] ayyy@sh.itjust.works 4 points 5 days ago

A responsible journalist would be happier if Sika agreed with the other side’s quoting of them. We currently only have the retelling of a conversation from one of the two parties. It’s a pretty credible retelling of the conversation, but we can’t be sure unless both parties agree thats how the conversation went.

[–] CompactFlax@discuss.tchncs.de 13 points 6 days ago

If they mean this Sika, turning it down for feasibility concerns, means it’s not feasible.

[–] tunetardis@piefed.ca 10 points 5 days ago (2 children)

Ironically, the only solution may be to drain the swamp and start over?

[–] Witchfire@lemmy.world 7 points 5 days ago

Don't stop at the reflecting pool

[–] elvith@feddit.org 2 points 5 days ago

No, you misheard. He never wanted to drain the swamp. The plan was to train the swamp!

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