Internal documents undercut Trump's Reflecting Pool vandalism claims: report

Internal White House documents about the issues at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool seem to undercut President Donald Trump's claims that the pool had been vandalized, according to a new report.

Trump blamed alleged "vandals" for damaging the pool after crews recently completed a more than $16 million renovation. Video of the bottom layer of paint peeling off in the pool and of green algae taking over nearly the entire structure has circulated online for several days, and some political experts have said the pool itself has become a "symbol" of the Trump administration's incompetence.

The New York Times reported on Tuesday that the Trump administration has been aware of the issues the pool faces for a while. Instead of admitting to the issues, the government has sought to blame alleged vandals instead, according to the report.

"Government documents obtained by The New York Times show that while National Park Service workers found two cuts in sections of foam between the pool’s expansion joints, those were not directly related to the 'American flag blue' coating that is now peeling, or to the algae that has turned the pool a bright shade of green," the NYT reported.

"Even as the documents show workers were attempting to address deteriorating conditions, Trump administration officials were insisting publicly that the pool was pristine," the outlet added.

Trump has consistently claimed that someone took a knife or box cutter to the bottom of the pool to damage the paint. However, one document obtained by the NYT showed that workers reported damage to the bottom of the pool about a week before reports surfaced.

"Work to fix the problems may not be finished until after July 4 — a setback for the president, who wanted the renovation to be completed before then," the Times added.