{"id":2801,"date":"2026-06-25T13:39:28","date_gmt":"2026-06-25T13:39:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/propertyrelocationusa.com\/?p=2801"},"modified":"2026-06-25T13:39:28","modified_gmt":"2026-06-25T13:39:28","slug":"trumps-claim-fizzles-as-park-service-wont-back-reflecting-pool-gash-in-court","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/propertyrelocationusa.com\/?p=2801","title":{"rendered":"Trump’s claim fizzles as Park Service won’t back Reflecting Pool ‘gash’ in court"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

The National Park Service refused to corroborate President Donald Trump’s claim of a 350-foot Reflecting Pool “gash” in a sworn court declaration filed this week.<\/p>\n

Read more Jeers rain down on Sean Duffy over Great American Fair remarks: \u2018You\u2019re garbage\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n

Frank Lands, the NPS’s deputy director for operations, submitted the two-page declaration in an ongoing federal lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia over the pool’s renovation. <\/p>\n

Lands described cut caulk, peeling liner material, and roughly 70 fence post tops thrown into the water. He never used the word “gash.” He never cited a 350-foot figure.<\/p>\n

“You’ll see it in court,” Trump told reporters Monday when asked whether he had visual evidence of the damage.<\/p>\n

The court filing came and went without it on Tuesday.<\/p>\n

Trump’s description of the alleged damage has kept shifting. He first called it a 250-foot gash, then 300 feet, then “numerous slashes over a very long 350-foot length.” However, no photos have been released. The Interior Department, asked for comment, pointed reporters to a post on X.<\/p>\n

Read more Republican lawmaker faces felony charges after 16 documents forged: report<\/a><\/p>\n

“[A] caulk over the foam sealant\u2026was cut with a sharp knife or razor and destruction of delaminating surface material,” under penalty of perjury.<\/p>\n

The pool is 2,000 feet long.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, at least one of the people arrested denied doing anything wrong. David Hearn, a 67-year-old former U.S. Olympic canoeist, said he stopped at the pool during a bike ride and touched a piece of peeling paint.<\/p>\n

“I didn’t vandalize anything,” Hearn told The Washington Post.<\/p>\n

His attorney said they would contest the two misdemeanor citations “vigorously.”<\/p>\n

The renovation cost taxpayers more than $16 million. Trump has promised to drain the pool again around the Fourth of July for what he called a “permanent repair.”<\/p>\n

Read more Knives out as scandal-scarred Republicans pile into one Florida race: \u2018You went to prison!<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The National Park Service refused to corroborate President Donald Trump’s claim of a 350-foot Reflecting Pool “gash” in a sworn court declaration filed this week.Frank Lands, the NPS’s deputy director for operations, submitted the two-page declaration in an ongoing federal lawsuit in the U.S. Distri…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2800,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2801","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nTrump's claim fizzles as Park Service won't back Reflecting Pool 'gash' in court - Property Relocation USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/propertyrelocationusa.com\/?p=2801\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Trump's claim fizzles as Park Service won't back Reflecting Pool 'gash' in court - 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