Trump threatens lawsuits against ABC network for reporting on Reflecting Pool
FILE PHOTO: ABC’s logo is pictured atop a building in Burbank, California, on February 5, 2014.
Mario Anzuoni | Reuters
US President Donald Trump has threatened to sue broadcaster ABC over its reporting on the cost of repairing damage caused to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool in Washington DC.
The US president said the network did not report expenses incurred by previous administrations to maintain the landmark.
In an article published on Truth Social, Trump claimed that ABC “spent over $100 Million on the Reflecting Pool of his close ‘friends’ Democratic Obama and Biden and never reported it working.”
Trump did not provide any evidence for the $100 million claim, but Advance reporting by PBS He stated that former President Barack Obama’s administration spent approximately $35 million on the repair of the monument. It is not known that any major repairs were made to the pool during the Biden administration.
He also claimed that the damage to the monument was caused by vandalism, but no evidence was presented by the White House that the Reflecting Pool was intentionally damaged.
Embers claimed to journalists On Monday, he said, a “350-foot gash” was cut “with a box cutter or some kind of knife.” NBC News reported It was stated that at least five people were arrested in connection with the alleged vandalism.
Referring to the $16 million paid by ABC to settle the defamation lawsuit filed in 2024, Trump said, “We are preparing a lawsuit against ABC due to fake news. I like the money to be given to the US Treasury.”
The network paid $15 million earmarked for Trump’s presidential library and an additional $1 million in attorney fees.
Last week, ABC reported The cost of repainting the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool has come to more than $14.65 million, he said.
That exceeded the original estimated cost of the no-bid contract, which was not awarded through competitive bidding, by more than $4 million, according to federal contracting data.
The broadcaster also highlighted a $1.74 million contract awarded to Green Water Solutions, an Ohio-based company, to install a “nanobubble” system that would destroy algae using a similar no-bid process.
This would bring the cost of the entire project to over $16 million.
The latest action against ABC comes as the broadcaster faces two investigations by the Federal Communications Commission, led by Trump appointee Brendan Carr.
The FCC also required ABC to apply for early renewal for eight local broadcast licenses. The move comes just after comedian Jimmy Kimmel joked about First Lady Melania Trump and the US president called for Kimmel to be fired.
There were stations Reportedly not planned to apply for renewal by 2028 at the earliest.
ABC on Monday said it was launching an on-air campaign encouraging viewers to support the network after its daytime talk show “The View” was investigated under federal “equal time” rules for political candidates. Reuters reported.
