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President Trump on Wednesday went into greater detail about how he believes vandals were the cause of the damage to the newly renovated Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool and nearby grass.
The president has repeatedly claimed that vandalism resulted in the bottom layer of the pool peeling, algae growth and destruction of grass on the National Mall.
“They went down with probably a box cutter or a very sharp razor or some kind to a knife, and they cut, and then they started ripping it up,” he said while meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in the Oval Office. “You know why? Because they’re sick people.”
Trump said some water will be released from the pool to fix the ripped parts, adding it could be before or after July 4.
“These people should go to jail for a long time,” he said, adding that it’s “Trump Derangement Syndrome.”
Trump had previously speculated that fertilizer was poured in, causing the algae.
“Around the reflecting pool we have a huge field of grass,” he said. “They poured acid on the grass, the same people I guess.
“It killed, you know, acid kills grass quickly, so that’s being fixed.”
On Monday, he said chemicals were “illegally placed in the water, and the beautiful new grass field has been destroyed with a gigantic ’86 47′ chemically carved into it.”
A massive “86 47” appeared on grass on the National Mall about two weeks ago. The number “86” is slang for getting rid of something, and Trump is the 47th president. The number combination has led people to take it as a threat toward the president.
He said Tuesday that six people have been arrested and seven have received citations over the recent damage. He clarified that the gash wasn’t 350 feet long but was instead “numerous slashes over a very long 350-foot length.” Trump has previously said the gash was 200 feet, then 300 feet long.
The Department of the Interior said Monday that five people had been arrested and five others had been cited. A spokesperson said 14 police reports had been filed for vandalism.
Trump has repeatedly said that images would be released to prove the damage was caused by vandals, but so far, none has been provided.
The president took on this project earlier this year, saying he would fix the pool’s leaks and replace the bottom with “American flag blue” paint ahead of the country’s 250th birthday.
The roughly $14 million project was completed earlier this month but has been plagued by issues.
Algae were quick to grow in the pool, turning the water shades of green. The National Park Service poured gallons of hydrogen peroxide into the pool to combat the algae and deployed the use of a nanobubbler system to stop it from growing.
One person arrested included former U.S. Olympic canoe racer David Hearn, who said he was detained by National Guard troops and Park Police for five hours. He told the Associated Press that he touched a piece of the peeling paint that was still attached to the side of the pool and stopped when he was told by a park worker.
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