Company hired for Trump’s reflecting pool makeover reportedly admits flaws in plan

Atlantic Industrial Coatings was given $14.7m no-bid contract and its findings contradict president’s claims of vandalism

The company hired to renovate the Lincoln Memorial reflecting pool has acknowledged that “human oversight” and flaws in the repair plan caused the newly installed blue liner to peel and tear, according to documents reviewed by the New York Times that challenge Donald Trump’s repeated claims of vandalism.

The president has repeatedly said vandals armed with knives or box cutters were responsible for tearing apart the pool’s “American flag blue” liner. But documents reviewed by the Times show that Atlantic Industrial Coatings, the company awarded the renovation contract, blamed its own execution of the repair work and a flawed design plan.