Donald Trump’s $14.2m bid to turn the Lincoln Memorial reflecting pool from what the US president described as a “filthy” and “dirty” site into a “beautiful” monument has encountered a hitch.

The water is green again.

Days after the renovation was finished, algae has frustrated Trump’s attempt to transform the shade of the pool to “American flag blue” in time for the country’s 250th birthday. Before-and-after photos: Trump’s $14.2m makeover delivers … a blue pool Read more

The reflecting pool – one of Washington DC’s most historically symbolic attractions, and the scene of Martin Luther King’s 1963 “I have a dream” speech – has been one element of Trump’s efforts to recondition the country’s capital during his second presidency.

A no-bid contract to waterproof and repaint the site, which dates back over a century, raised eyebrows. It was awarded to a Virginia-based company, Atlantic Industrial Coatings, which had previously carried out work on a swimming pool at one of the president’s golf clubs.