Donald Trump's comments on Monday, 19 May, triggered new online debate after the 79-year-old president told reporters theLincoln Memorial Reflecting Poolwas 'going to be waterproof.' The remark drew criticism from Fox News viewers and social media users, who called it 'bizarre' and questioned his mental sharpness.
For context, Trump was speaking on the South Lawn of the White House at the annual bipartisan Congressional Picnic, where he appeared alongside First Lady Melania Trump. According to the Irish Star, he discussed Iran, global oil prices and his planned $400 million expansion of the White House ballroom before turning to renovations at the Reflecting Pool near the Lincoln Memorial.
The latest wave of speculation began when Trump described the long, shallow pool on the National Mall as a project he was personally overseeing at a fraction of the cost. 'I'm doing a job on the reflecting lake for a fraction of what they paid,' he said. 'Now I've upgraded it very — I got so into it, I've upgraded it like you wouldn't believe.'
He went on to outline what he said were improvements to the site, including new pathways and repairs to the water feature itself. 'I'm doing all the walkways outside. I'm doing it properly, but it's a much bigger job, and you see it happening now. It's going to be beautiful, it's going to be waterproof, it's going to be reflecting again,' he told reporters.
Trump: "I'm doing a job on the reflecting lake. It's gonna be water proof."pic.twitter.com/MmKribGKds
The word 'waterproof' quickly became the focus of the backlash. Critics pointed out that a pool designed to hold water is, by definition, already waterproof. On X, one user wrote: 'The reflecting lake will be waterproof is definitely a top 10 dumbest thing he's ever said.' Another said: 'This has to be the dumbest quote of the day by Trump,' while a third joked: 'Excellent. Once he's done, maybe he can waterproof the Potomac.'
Trump also complained about the condition of the pool before the renovations, saying, "I took over a dirty, filthy thing that wasn't open. It was disgusting, and friends of mine would come to the Lincoln or the Washington" and say, "'Sir, it's disgusting,' and I said, 'What's disgusting?' The reflecting lake."
The slip between 'pool' and 'lake' only fuelled the mockery online. One viewer said Trump was wasting taxpayer money on the Reflecting Pool without even knowing its name, adding that it was already waterproof and asking, in effect, how a pool could be anything else.
From there, criticism of his language moved into sharper territory. Some Fox News viewers and commentators framed the remark as a sign of cognitive decline rather than a simple gaffe. 'Trump's dementia is out of control,' one user claimed. Another asked, 'What in the dementia is this?' while a third wrote that America should place him under supervision before he causes more damage.
Others focused on competence rather than diagnosis. 'Jesus. THIS buffoon has access to the codes?' one viewer posted, while another branded the comment 'ludicrous' and Trump himself 'dumb.'
Source: International Business Times UK
