{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.heinrich.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/heinrich-whitehouse-call-for-interior-inspector-general-investigation-into-trump-administrations-handling-of-failed-lincoln-memorial-reflecting-pool-project", "Heinrich, Whitehouse Call For Interior Inspector General Investigation into Trump Administration's Handling of Failed Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool Project", "2026-08-05", "2026", "2026-08", "Democrat", "Senate", "NM", "Martin Heinrich", "H001046", "www.heinrich.senate.gov", "heinrich", "https://www.heinrich.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, and U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, sent a letter requesting that the Department of the Interior (DOI) Deputy Inspector General Caryl Brzymialkiewicz investigate what Department officials knew \u2013 and when they knew it \u2013 about engineering failures at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool and whether DOI employees withheld evidence from federal prosecutors.\n\nThe request follows explosive new court filings from the U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office for the District of Columbia, which moved to dismiss felony vandalism charges against the three-time Olympian David Hearn after acknowledging that DOI had failed to provide prosecutors with information showing the Reflecting Pool\u2019s lining was already peeling because of a rushed and flawed installation process before Hearn was arrested.\n\n\u201cWe write to request that the Office of Inspector General investigate what employees of the Department of the Interior (DOI) knew\u2014and when they knew it\u2014regarding the peeling of the coating and other engineering issues at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool. On July 31, 2026, the U.S. Attorneys\u2019 Office for the District of Columbia (USAO-DC) filed a voluntary motion to dismiss felony vandalism charges against David Hearn, noting in its pleading that documents it received from DOI after the indictment \u2018indicated a rushed and flawed installation process, with repeated failures of the lining during the installation process, and extensive peeling of the lining throughout the Reflecting Pool.\u2019 Additional details provided in the motion\u2014and prior (and continuing) contradictory statements by DOI leadership \u2014 deserve immediate scrutiny,\u2019\u201d the Senators began.\n\nThe Senators note that the DOJ\u2019s filing states prosecutors relied on incomplete and faulty information from DOI and only obtained critical evidence after repeatedly requesting documents from the Department. According to the filing, had DOI disclosed information already in its possession, prosecutors never would have sought a grand jury indictment against Hearn. The filing further reveals that a National Park Service engineer alerted DOI officials on June 11 \u2013 eight days before Hearn\u2019s arrest \u2013 that the Reflecting Pool\u2019s new lining was already peeling.\n\n\u201cThese events, and the information and documents that DOI apparently possesses that remain non-public, provide ample predicate for an investigation by your office. Numerous questions remain: How was the vandalism lie cooked up? How did it get to President Trump\u2019s desk? Or did it originate from the White House? What knowledge of the peeling did DOI employees (including DOI leadership) possess, when did they possess it, and what were their respective roles? Who received and was copied on the June 11 email thread? Why did DOI hold relevant documents from USAO-DC?\u201d the Senators pressed, raising questions about what DOI officials knew, who was aware of the engineering failures, why key information was withheld from prosecutors, and whether senior Department officials continued to promote false claims even after evidence contradicted them.\n\nThe Senators concluded their letter urging the Interior Inspector General to investigate DOI\u2019s knowledge of the coating failures and whether DOI employees intentionally withheld evidence from the U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office, \u201cAccordingly, we urge your office to open an immediate investigation into DOI\u2019s knowledge of coating and peeling issues with the Reflecting Pool\u2014including what was known, who knew it, and when they knew it\u2014and whether DOI employees intentionally withheld evidence from USAO-DC.\u201d\n\nThe request builds on Heinrich's June oversight letter demanding answers from Secretary Burgum after the Reflecting Pool rehabilitation project spiraled from an estimated $1.5-2 million to more than $16 million, noting that the issues facing the reflecting pool were not simply maintenance concerns, but failures in project execution and government oversight.\n\nThe full letter is available here and below.\n\nDear Deputy Inspector General Brzymialkiewicz:\n\nWe write to request that the Office of Inspector General investigate what employees of the Department of the Interior (DOI) knew\u2014and when they knew it\u2014regarding the peeling of the coating and other engineering issues at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool. On July 31, 2026, the U.S. Attorneys\u2019 Office for the District of Columbia (USAO-DC) filed a voluntary motion to dismiss felony vandalism charges against David Hearn, noting in its pleading that documents it received from DOI after the indictment \u201cindicated a rushed and flawed installation process, with repeated failures of the lining during the installation process, and extensive peeling of the lining throughout the Reflecting Pool.\u201d Additional details provided in the motion\u2014and prior (and continuing) contradictory statements by DOI leadership\u2014deserve immediate scrutiny.\n\nHere are the relevant facts surrounding the Reflecting Pool renovations and subsequent arrests:\n\nIn April 2026, the Trump administration launched a project to seal seams and re-coat the basin bottom of the Reflecting Pool, estimating costs at $1.5 to $2 million. To complete the work, the administration entered into two no-bid contracts on April 3 and 13, respectively, with Atlantic Industrial Coatings (AIC) and Greenwater Services.\n\nDuring April and May 2026, the project ran into various delays and the scope of work expanded as contractors discovered complications. Costs also began to balloon, eventually reaching more than $16 million.\n\nOn May 7, 2026, President Trump visited the Reflecting Pool, and his motorcade drove directly over the drained, coated basin. DOI Secretary Doug Burgum joined President Trump.\n\nOn June 4, 2026, the administration announced that the re-coating was complete and crews would begin refilling the pool.\n\nOn June 10, 2026, observers and news media began noting algal blooms in the pool water, and maintenance crews used hydrogen peroxide to clear the algae.\n\nOn June 18, 2026, news outlets first reported that the Reflecting Pool\u2019s new coating had begun to peel.\n\nOn June 19, 2026, three-time Olympian David Hearn was arrested and charged with felony vandalism after he reached into the pool and touched a piece of peeling paint.\n\nAlso on June 19, 2026, President Trump first posed on Truth Social that there were \u201csome real problems with Vandalism at the beautiful Reflecting Pool.\u201d He repeated the claims on June 20, 2026, adding that vandals had made a 250-foot long gash. And on June 23, 2026, he increased his claims to a \u201c350 foot gash, made by a very sharp knife or razors,\u201d but indicated that the length was the combined total of multiple smaller gashes. He provided no evidence.\n\nNew information in the court documents filed on July 31, 2026, provides the basis for this request. USAO-DC attorneys, including U.S. Attorney Jeannine Pirro, filed a voluntary motion to dismiss the felony charges against Mr. Hearn. In their motion, the attorneys explicitly stated they had relied on incomplete and faulty information provided by DOI in bringing the charges:\n\nDOI provided less than fulsome information at the outset of this case. However, the information subsequently demanded by USAO disclosed by DOI\u2014which was not known to the prosecutors or the grand jury before the return of the indictment\u2014strongly suggest that a rushed and botched installation by AIC, the primary contractor, led to the damage to the lining of the Reflecting Pool. It was not until USAO-DC repeatedly reached out to DOI dozens and dozens of times that DOI slowly started trickling information to USAO-DC. Had DOI been forthcoming with the information clearly in its possession, the government would not have sought a grand jury indictment.\n\nAmong other things, the motion to dismiss included the revelation that, on June 11, 2026, \u201ca[] [National Park Service] engineer was alerted to peeling of the Reflecting Pool lining. He sent an email at 12:00 p.m. that day to other NPS and DOI personnel detailing the [peeling].\u201d This June 11, 2026, email was sent 8 days before the arrest of Mr. Hearn.\n\nFurthermore, the withholding of this exculpatory information walked DOJ lawyers into a violation of their Brady and Giglio obligations. Brady v. Maryland held that due process requires prosecutors to disclose to the accused all \u201cfavorable\u201d and exculpatory evidence that is \u201cmaterial\u201d to their case. Giglio v. United States requires that prosecutors disclose information about a government witness that could undermine that witness\u2019s credibility, a requirement echoed in D.C. law, court rules, and the D.C. Rules of Professional Conduct. These disclosures protect \u201cthe defendant\u2019s right to a fair trial\u201d and \u201censure that a miscarriage of justice does not occur.\u201d\n\nThese events, and the information and documents that DOI apparently possesses that remain non-public, provide ample predicate for an investigation by your office. Numerous questions remain: How was the vandalism lie cooked up? How did it get to President Trump\u2019s desk? Or did it originate from the White House? What knowledge of the peeling did DOI employees (including DOI leadership) possess, when did they possess it, and what were their respective roles? Who received and was copied on the June 11 email thread? Why did DOI hold relevant documents from USAO-DC?\n\nThese questions, and any attendant questions, are all squarely within the purview of the DOI IG. Investigation by your office is especially warranted given that DOI\u2019s leadership continues to advance President Trump\u2019s false claims notwithstanding the admissions in USAO-DC\u2019s motion to dismiss; indeed, a day after USAO-DC filed that motion, Secretary Burgum tweeted: \u201cThe evidence is clear, vandals have repeatedly caused damage to the Reflecting Pool.\u201d\n\nAccordingly, we urge your office to open an immediate investigation into DOI\u2019s knowledge of coating and peeling issues with the Reflecting Pool\u2014including what was known, who knew it, and when they knew it\u2014and whether DOI employees intentionally withheld evidence from USAO-DC.\n\nWe appreciate your prompt attention to this matter and look forward to your findings.", 1, "2026-08-06T07:37:31Z", "2026-08-06T07:38:34Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.heinrich.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/heinrich-whitehouse-call-for-interior-inspector-general-investigation-into-trump-administrations-handling-of-failed-lincoln-memorial-reflecting-pool-project"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 2.8885328210890293, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}