Are Trump's Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool Renovations Ahead of or Behind Schedule?

As the Trump Administration has conducted renovations of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool at the National Mall, media outlets have split on framing the progress of the project.

NYT Report: The New York Times (Lean Left bias) reported on May 12 that "Interior Department staff members have raised concerns about the quality and speed of the repair work" and that documents it reviewed said current issues might not be resolved by the May 22 deadline. Of this, The Times wrote, "That would be an ironic turn of events, given that federal bidding laws were skirted because the government had argued there was an urgent need – to have it ready for the country's 250th anniversary celebrations." In early May, Trump said the project would cost $1.8 million, but The Times said a record updated on May 15 said it would cost $13.1 million.

Trump Fires Back: President Trump criticized The Times on May 12 for "trying to justify Obama and Biden's expensively botched attempt at fixing the long broken, unsightly, and unsanitary Reflecting Pool" and slanting reporting against his effort. In May 12 and May 16 posts, he suggested that past efforts to renovate the pool by Presidents Obama and Biden wasted between 55 and over 100 million dollars, and that project estimates were between 355 and 400 million dollars. On May 16, he said the project was running "ahead of schedule" and should be done before July 4.

For Context: Trump first announced plans to renovate the pool in November. The renovations have been overseen by the Department of the Interior.

Split Framing: Fox News (Right) and The Times ran headlines that stood in contrast to each other, with The Times saying the project is behind schedule, while Fox amplified Trump's claim that it is ahead of schedule. The Times emphasized its reporting from anonymous sources within the Interior Department who were reportedly concerned about the project. Fox described a photo Trump shared of the ongoing renovations as "stunning" and briefly summarized The Times' reporting. Fox said The Times and the Interior Department "did not immediately respond" to requests for comment.

Written by the AllSides staff (of humans). Learn more. Support our mission. Suggest an improvement to this summary.