President Donald Trump said he hasn't decided whether to fire U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro after her office contradicted his claims that the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool was damaged by vandals, and instead pointed to "flawed" renovation work.
“I haven’t made a determination," Trump told reporters Aug. 5 when asked whether he planned to keep Pirro in her job, speaking after an event in California.
Trump has repeatedly criticized Pirro in recent days after her office dropped charges against Olympian David Hearn, who was accused of causing more than $1,000 in damage to the pool. The Department of Justice subsequently dismissed charges against three other individuals accused of vandalizing the pool.
DOJ said in a court filing dismissing Hearn's
case that Interior Department documents show that “the damage was the result of a botched installation and not vandalism.”
The filing describes a rushed installation of the new Reflecting Pool liner, which began peeling, and said charges never would have been filed against Hearn if the Interior Department had been forthcoming about the renovation problems.
Trump said Pirro "choked" and "folded like an umbrella" in dropping the Hearn case, lashing out at her during an Aug. 3 Oval Office event. He met with Pirro at the White House later that day.
The president has continued to insist without evidence that the Reflecting Pool damage was caused by nefarious actors, telling reporters during his California trip "it was major vandalism."
"I just think she was totally wrong," Trump said of Pirro, a former Fox News host he appointed last year as U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, adding: "I told her I was not happy.”
Trump has touted the Reflecting Pool renovations as part of a broader Washington makeover, saying he wanted to spruce up the pool ahead of the nation's 250th anniversary celebration last month, but the project has been plagued by problems, including the peeling lining and algae blooms.
Contributing: Erin Mansfield
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump hasn't 'made a determination' on firing Pirro in pool dispute
