Trump’s Plan to Paint the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool Blue Sparks Lawsuit
The Cultural Landscape Foundation (TCLF), a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit founded in 1998, filed a lawsuit on April 12 in the U.S. District Court in Washington against the U.S. Department of the Interior over plans to paint the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool “American flag blue.” The suit argues the change violates Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 and seeks a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction to halt work. In early April, the Interior Department awarded a no-bid contract to Atlantic Industrial Coatings to waterproof and paint the pool, a project whose cost reportedly rose from $2 million to $13 million; President Donald Trump discussed the plan at an April 23 Oval Office event and said he chose the shade. TCLF cited the pool’s historic design (opened in 1924) and referenced a May 1 Truth Social post featuring an A.I.-generated image of Trump and others lounging in the pool as evidence the new color would make it resemble a swimming pool.
From This Briefing
This story was covered in Blue Pools, Stolen Jewels, and Museum Power Plays