American flag blue? Algae turns Trump’s reflecting pool swamp green instead

South China Morning Post Tuesday 16 June 2026, 23:56 UTC By Agence France-Presse 1 min read

Key Points

One of President Donald Trump’s pet beauty projects for Washington was supposed to make the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool look blue, like part of the US flag. Algae has proliferated in the water, turning it a swampy green. “Can you see it in my photos?

One of President Donald Trump’s pet beauty projects for Washington was supposed to make the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool look blue, like part of the US flag. Enter Mother Nature. Algae has proliferated in the water, turning it a swampy green. “Can you see it in my photos? Oh well, I’ll just use a filter to hide the algae,” said Farrah Lu, a 43-year-old tourist from China. The invasion comes just days after the completion of the pool repainting project, part of Trump’s drive to put his stamp... [Image text:] GREAT AG MAKE AME

American (ORG) Trump (ORG) Donald Trump (PERSON) Washington (LOCATION) the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool (LOCATION) US (LOCATION) Farrah Lu (PERSON) China (LOCATION)

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American flag blue? Algae turns Trump’s reflecting pool swamp green instead

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