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- Reflecting Pool Is Now Under Siege by a Different and More ‘Aggressive’ Form...
AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite President Donald Trump’s $14 million renovation project at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool is not going well. In fact, the efforts to kill off the algae are apparently helping foster a new, even more aggressive algae, according to tests conducted by a reporter for The Atlantic. Trump’s decision to drain the pool and paint the bottom “American Flag Blue” has been criticized for its cost, plus the no-bid contract for the work. Since the pool was refilled, bright green algae spread throughout the water and the paint has been peeling away. Reporters have seen tourists tearing off pieces of the paint to bring home as souvenirs. The government has sent out work crews to try and combat the algae through various means, including “hydro-vacuums” and pouring hydrogen peroxide into the water. That appears to have been an inadequate fix, only killing off some of the algae along the outer edges of the Reflecting Pool and possibly even causing or exacerbating the peeling paint. But the problems caused by the hydrogen peroxide don’t end there, wrote Matt Viser for The Atlantic on Friday. Viser had observed the Reflecting Pool on several different days recently, watching tourists grab their souvenirs and government workers wading through the water making various attempts to remove the algae, noting that the water was “relatively clear” in some sections, an “oily sludge” in others, and multiple shades of green from the algae in others. He asked multiple people with the National Parks Service, official spokespeople and the workers on site, about the progress of the algae removal, and could get answers neither about the work nor if any of the algae species present were toxic — a nontrivial matter, since local wildlife, tourists, and locals have been touching the water. The Atlantic decided to run its own tests on the water. Viser gathered samples from multiple areas of the Reflecting Pool, and brought them to two different scientists for testing. “Testing reveals that efforts to suppress one algal bloom seem to be fueling another,” wrote Viser, and the “workers battling against nature” in “the country’s most high-profile science experiment” may actually be making things worse. “After a week of combat,” wrote Viser, “they have essentially killed off one type of algae infesting the pool, only to create the conditions for a new type to take over. And Scenedesmus, a genus of green algae… [TheTopNews] Read More.4 hours ago - Trump Claims ‘Vandalism’ Caused Reflecting Pool Debacle, Accuses ABC Reporte...
President Donald Trump is now claiming that the problems with the newly renovated Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool were caused by unidentified vandals. The president has taken a personal interest in the renovations and frequently raised the topic during press gaggles. Since the job was completed, the pool has been plagued by algae blooms. This week, visitors to the pool began to notice paint peeling away from the bottom. The algae has given the pool a distinct green hue instead of the intended American flag blue. Some tourists have reportedly been ripping off pieces of the paint to take as souvenirs. Trump addressed the problems on Friday night in a post on Truth Social. He bragged about having “beautified over 45 Monuments and Memorials, 28 Statues, and 22 Fountains in Washington, D.C.” The president pivoted to the pool, whose problems he blamed on vandalism. For good measure, Trump accused ABC News Chief Washington Correspondent Jonathan Karl of “trying to rip the rubber off of the surface”: [W]e’ve had some real problems with Vandalism at the beautiful Reflecting Pool, which sits between The Washington Monument and The Lincoln Memorial. Just like three days ago, they destroyed the grass outside of the Pool, they’ve also done everything possible to hurt the inside surface that was just installed. No different than the chemicals that were used on the National Mall, they used something similar in the Reflecting Pool to try to destroy and demean our beautiful work. Lightweight ABC Reporter, Jonathan Karl, was seen sticking his hand into the Pool, and trying to rip the rubber off of the surface. The algae is 75% gone, and the condition will soon be completely remedied, and the area that was vandalized, fortunately, is just a small area of damage, and will be fixed early next week. Trump added that police are “actively investigating this situation, and will hopefully have it resolved soon.” The president’s reference to Karl seems to be an allusion to a video the reporter shot at the Reflecting Pool on Thursday, where he reached into the pool and held a piece of peeling paint to show viewers the problem. At no point did Karl attempt to “rip” anything off, as Trump claimed. The Reflecting Pool was renovated by Atlantic Industrial Coatings, a Virginia-based company that was awarded a $13.1 billion no-bid contract. On Thursday, The New York Times reported that the pool’s… [TheTopNews] Read More.5 hours ago - Democratic-Backed Senate Candidate Reportedly Called ICE on Migrant Workers
On Friday, CNN’s KFile team reported that Dan Osborn, the Democratic-backed independent Senate candidate from Nebraska, recalled calling ICE on replacement workers hired after his union went on strike in 2021, despite heavily criticizing the agency throughout his campaign. KFile’s Andrew Kaczynski joined CNN’s Boris Sanchez on-air, explaining, “Dan Osborn presents himself as a pro-labor populist who is sharply critical of some of [President Donald] Trump’s administration’s harsh immigration enforcement tactics. But, during a major labor strike that he led in 2021, Osborn said his union had turned to federal immigration authorities over allegations involving undocumented replacement workers.” The uncovered video of Osborn from 2021 was shown next, depicting the candidate telling an interviewer about his union’s strike, “Kellogg’s is bringing in replacement workers. We have it on good authority that they’re replacing us with a good percentage of undocumented workers… We have been in contact with Homeland Security and ICE… I hope they do the right thing and investigate our claims.” Kaczynski said that at the time, Osborn was the president of a local union for Omaha Kellogg’s cereal plant workers. Kellogg’s did not respond to KFile’s request for comment on the immigration status of the replacement workers in question. In recent months, Osborn has “criticized the use of masked federal agents and called some of what he’s seeing ‘not humanly decent,'” reported KFile. “His campaign told CNN that he actually never personally contacted ICE or Homeland Security. Instead, the campaign said that he contacted the local sheriff and sought guidance on how those allegations involving undocumented replacement workers should be reported.” The campaign went on to claim that individuals whom Osborn told about the sheriff’s advice contacted federal authorities on their own. The campaign added: There’s a reason we haven’t had real immigration reform in this country: mega-corporations who use Citizens United to fund career politicians in DC are benefiting from our broken immigration system by exploiting undocumented immigrants to create a cheap pool of labor, driving down wages to boost their own profits while undercutting American workers. As Sanchez pointed out, “this also comes as Osborn is relying heavily on Democratic voters in the Senate race.” Watch the full clip above via CNN.The post Democratic-Backed Senate Candidate Reportedly Called ICE on Migrant Workers first appeared on Mediaite. [TheTopNews] Read More.6 hours ago - Art of the Peel: Tourists Are ‘Tearing Off Pieces’ of the Reflecting Pool’...The algae and peeling paint plaguing President Donald Trump’s $14 million renovation project at the Reflecting Pool have gotten to the point where tourists are stopping by and “tearing off pieces” of the paint to bring home as souvenirs, CNN reported. Anchor Omar Jimenez introduced the report from correspondent Tom Foreman on Friday’s episode of CNN News Central, commenting that crews were “still trying to remove all that algae from the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool,” but now they were having to deal with “new problems, including parts of the pool’s floor now appear to be peeling off,” showing video of “flaps of blue material” that were “floating in the water.” Photos and video of the bright green algae, government workers’ attempts to clear it with hydrogen peroxide, and then the paint seeming to peel (which may have been caused or exacerbated by the hydrogen peroxide) have been going viral on social media this week. Clips are going viral of the new $14M paint on the Reflecting Pool peeling off just 12 days after the pool reopened. pic.twitter.com/4bX8v1jCfB — Headquarters (@HQNewsNow) June 18, 2026 It was not clear if it was sealant or paint, Jimenez said, pointing out the “flaps of blue material” floating in the water and asking Foreman for an update on how the crew’s work was progressing to tackle the algae and paint issues. “Tom, what are you seeing?” asked Jimenez. “Are crews out making any progress? I feel like you got your sleeves rolled up. Have you been putting your hands in there too?” Foreman said he had been “very careful here not to pull at this because we don’t want to, you know, make anything worse,” and pointed out a loose flap of the paint or sealant in the water. “There have been tourists coming along, tearing off pieces to take as souvenirs,” said Foreman. “Now, did they cause this problem? I don’t know, maybe. Did they exacerbate it? Maybe. And we don’t have proof, exactly that that is the sealant we’re talking about. But it sure looks like it.” As far as the algae cleanup was going, Foreman said the crews “are working very hard and it is very slow,” and they were now “pumping oxygen into the water in a form of ozone to try to break up the chemical process that forms these algae blooms, very commonly… [TheTopNews] Read More.8 hours ago
- Suspect in 14-Year-Old Girl’s Death Had Life Sentence Commuted by Kristi Noem
AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura A man whose life sentence was commuted by then-South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem has been charged in connection with the death of a 14-year-old girl whose disappearance prompted a days-long search earlier this year, per statements from the Sioux Falls police reported by ABC News on Friday. According to an indictment unsealed this week, 51-year-old Mark Milk faces federal charges alleging he transported a minor with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, supplied cocaine that resulted in the girl’s death, and later worked with another man to conceal evidence. The victim, McKenna Wendel, was reported missing in March before authorities discovered her body in a rural area near Brookings, South Dakota. Prosecutors allege the teenager died from a drug overdose on or about March 14. A second defendant, 38-year-old Jon Rogness of Brookings, is accused of helping Milk evade law enforcement after McKenna’s death. Both men are currently in state custody, according to authorities, with Milk’s arrest occurring on March 17 for drunk driving and aggravated eluding charges. Federal and local investigators described the case in stark terms as they announced the charges during a Thursday press briefing. “This is a horrific case,” FBI Omaha Field Office Special Agent in Charge Gene Kowel said. “There are no cases that we investigate that are more heart-wrenching, more tragic than ones that involve children or the death of a child.” The charges have also renewed attention on Milk’s criminal history. In 1994, he received a life sentence for manslaughter after fatally stabbing a man during a fight. South Dakota’s Board of Pardons and Paroles later recommended clemency, and Noem, who would later serve as Homeland Security Secretary under President Donald Trump before her firing, commuted the sentence in 2023 to 240 years, making him eligible for parole. According to ABC News, the victim was listed as a guest at Milk’s June 2024 parole hearing, with Sioux Falls police having previously identified Milk as a family member of the teen.The post Suspect in 14-Year-Old Girl’s Death Had Life Sentence Commuted by Kristi Noem first appeared on Mediaite. [TheTopNews] Read More.8 hours ago - Trump Pulls the Rug From Candidate He Previously Endorsed, Now Says He’s Endor...
AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin President Donald Trump essentially negated the endorsement he previously gave South Carolina Lt. Governor Pamela Evette (R) by endorsing her and her opponent. Last month, Trump endorsed Evette in the crowded Republican gubernatorial primary field. “Pam Evette is a good friend, fighter, and WINNER, and will be a terrific Governor of South Carolina,” the president wrote on Truth Social. “Pam has my Complete and Total Endorsement — SHE WILL NEVER LET YOU DOWN!” On election night last week, Evette received the most votes, and Attorney General Alan Wilson came in second. Neither received the majority of votes needed to avoid a runoff, which will now take place on Tuesday. On Friday, Trump took to Truth Social to reiterate his endorsement of Evette, but added that he is also endorsing Wilson: Both have had amazing careers, and have been with me from the beginning. They are MAGA and America First all the way! These were the two that I was hoping would get into a Runoff, and they did. I can’t hurt one of them by only Endorsing the other, so, therefore, I am going to Endorse, for Governor of South Carolina, both Pam Evette and Alan Wilson! It’s a Wealth of Riches – With either one you can’t go wrong. Vote for Pam or Alan — They will not let you down! President DONALD J. TRUMP It is not the first time Trump has endorsed two candidates in the same primary. In 2024, he endorsed Blake Masters and Abe Hamadeh in a U.S. House race in Arizona that Hamadeh eventually won. Last year, the president backed Rep. Andy Biggs and Karrin Taylor Robinson in the Arizona Republican gubernatorial primary, which will be held on July 21. Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) had hoped to score Trump’s endorsement in the South Carolina primary, and went so far as to insist she had his backing by posting an AI-generated image of the two of them giving the thumbs up. “Pamela Evette is NOT ENDORSED by DONALD TRUMP,” Mace wrote on social media. “Do not believe her LIES.” Hours later, the president endorsed Evette.The post Trump Pulls the Rug From Candidate He Previously Endorsed, Now Says He’s Endorsing Her Opponent Also first appeared on Mediaite. [TheTopNews] Read More.8 hours ago
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