Trump renovated the Reflecting Pool. Now it’s plagued with algae.

Summary

Apple News Today – "Trump renovated the Reflecting Pool. Now it’s plagued with algae."

Date: June 22, 2026
Host: Gideon Resnick (in for Shumita Basu)

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Episode Overview

This episode guides listeners through major news stories, with a primary focus on issues surrounding President Trump’s high-profile renovation of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, recent tumultuous US-Iran negotiations, the unfolding Ebola crisis in Congo, climate news, education controversy in India, and how World Cup travelers are experiencing America. The tone is brisk, clear, and informative, with on-the-ground quotes and analysis from reporters and affected people.

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Key Discussion Points

1. US-Iran Relations and Strait of Hormuz Tensions

[00:05–03:52]

• Peace Talks Begin: Vice President J.D. Vance opened negotiations with Iran in Switzerland to attempt a permanent peace deal, offering normalized relations if Iran gives up nuclear ambitions.
  • J.D. Vance: “If they are willing to give up nuclear weapons ambitions for the long term, then the United States is willing to fundamentally transform our relationship with that country.” (00:11)
• Ongoing Instability: Despite a signed deal calling for an end to conflict on all fronts, fighting continues between Israel and Hezbollah, prompting renewed threats between Trump and Iranian leaders.
• Strategic Waterway at Risk: The Strait of Hormuz, vital for global oil supply, remains partially closed, backing up tankers and threatening economic fallout.
  • Jason Douglas (WSJ): “The Persian Gulf is clogged with vessels waiting to get out ... this is a process that will probably take weeks, could even take months to get things back to normality.” (01:47)
  • On Longer-Term Impact: Addressing how globalization creates vulnerabilities, and Gulf States are likely to invest heavily in alternate routes to avoid repeat crises.
• Takeaway: Even as immediate tensions might resolve, the episode suggests the world’s energy geopolitics are facing permanent changes, with alternative pipelines and diversified energy routes inevitable.

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2. Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool Renovation Fiasco

[03:52–07:11]

• Trump’s Project Backfires: A $14 million taxpayer-funded makeover of the historic pool (including painting it “American Flag Blue”) faces immediate setbacks as algae blooms proliferate and paint peels within weeks.
  • Maura Judkus (Washington Post): “There are workers around the clock there who are killing and vacuuming up the algae and using tubes to drain it into drainage areas ... but it is looking much better.” (04:25)
• Longstanding Algae Issue: Reporters note that algae is a perennial problem due to the D.C. heat and the pool’s shallow design, despite repeated expensive renovations.
  • Judkus: “Algae has actually been a problem in the reflecting pool for as long as anyone can remember ... the problem really is that algae thrive on heat and sunlight, and those are incredibly abundant in Washington in June.” (04:43)
• Blame Game: Trump claims vandals damaged the pool, posting on Truth Social about a supposed 250-foot gash and chemical sabotage—a claim not corroborated by the media.
  • Judkus: “The president posted on Truth Social that vandals, quote, took some form of knife or blade and put a 250-foot-long gash into the pool ... we haven't been able to corroborate those claims.” (05:21–05:38)
• Human Interest: A former Olympian was arrested for allegedly peeling paint but denied vandalism.
• Unexpected Tourism: The pool now draws crowds wanting to see the disastrous state firsthand—what Judkus dubs “a little bit of a Streisand effect.”
  • Tourist: “We're spending money on makeup and upkeep when, you know, there's the homeless ... there's money that can be allocated for, but we're paying a pool for 14 million.” (06:28)
  • Tourist: “They might be able to get it blue for the 4th of July, but it won't stay that way ... I don't think you can fight Mother Nature.” (06:41)
• Ongoing Issues: The Interior Department claims the pool is “crystal clear,” but more draining is expected, and leaky pipes remain unresolved.

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3. Ebola Crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo

[07:20–09:06]

• Severity Increases: Over 900 cases and 200 deaths, with Africa’s CDC head warning of a potentially record-breaking outbreak due to difficulties tracing infected contacts.
  • Dr. Jean Casea (Africa CDC): "We are missing more than 26,000 people and we don't know where they are and we don't know if they are contaminating other people." (07:47)
• Underreported Spread: Journalists and health workers suggest official stats understate the challenge, as many victims are not reaching hospitals.
  • Emmett Livingstone (NPR): “The government says 72% of contacts are being traced, but ... it's probably around 40%. What this means ... is that the outbreak is out of control.” (08:13)
• Resource Gaps: Only about 10% of pledged funds have actually reached the field, compounding difficulties.
  • Saira Madad (Harvard): “There’s an entire process ... once funding is shared and sent, then it goes through an entire process of distribution and actually being able to be used on the front lines.” (08:50)
• Combatting Misinformation: Mistrust and disbelief in the virus remain significant; local media and survivors try to drum up awareness.
  • Pastor & survivor: “Some accept it, but others don’t believe it. They claim I was paid off and didn’t actually have the disease.” (09:32)
• WHO Perspective: The response is only at “3 or 4 out of 10” in readiness. (09:52)

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4. Quick News Hits

[10:09–11:19]

Europe’s Extreme Heatwave

• [10:09]: Temperatures nearing 104°F lead to travel disruptions, school closures, and restrictions at events; a Saharan “African anticyclone” presses hot air north into Europe.
• [10:31]: In France, alcohol sales are restricted at festivals to reduce strain on emergency services.

Indian Medical Exam Scandal

• [10:40]: Over two million students had to retake a medical entrance exam after a question leak, enduring rigorous security checks and a ban on Telegram due to fraud.
  • Test is crucial for access to education and government jobs amidst 15% youth unemployment.

World Cup Travelers in America

• [11:19–12:12]: Foreign visitors marvel at American supermarkets, “divine” free ice, ranch dressing, and supersized portions.
  • Japanese Fan: “I’m so happy to eat everything. Yeah.” (11:43)
• Expert View: People remember kind gestures more than tourist sites or sports scores.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• J.D. Vance, on peace negotiations:
  “We’re all working towards regional peace... there’s still some additional wood to chop, but we’re going to keep on working at it.” (01:23)

• Jason Douglas, on the Gulf:
  “As soon as your adversaries realize that you’re going to use [choke points], then they will look for alternatives.” (03:17)

• Maura Judkus, on the reflecting pool’s notoriety:
  “It’s a little bit of a Streisand effect where now people are actually going down there to look at the algae and look at the chipping paint...” (06:04)

• Washington, D.C. Tourist, criticizing priorities:
  “We're spending money on makeup and upkeep when, you know, there's the homeless... there’s money that can be allocated for, but we're paying a pool for 14 million.” (06:28)

• Dr. Jean Casea, CDC Africa:
  “We are missing more than 26,000 people and we don’t know where they are and we don’t know if they are contaminating other people.” (07:47)

• Ebola survivor Pastor:
  “Some accept it, but others don’t believe it. They claim I was paid off and didn’t actually have the disease.” (09:32)

• Japanese World Cup Fan:
  “I’m so happy to eat everything. Yeah.” (11:43)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• US-Iran Talks & Strait of Hormuz: 00:05–03:52
• Reflecting Pool Renovation Problems: 03:52–07:11
• Ebola Outbreak in Congo: 07:20–09:06
• Europe Heatwave & India Exam: 10:09–11:19
• World Cup Travelers & American Culture: 11:19–12:12

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Tone & Language

The language is concise and journalistic, balancing facts with on-the-ground color and affected voices. Although brief, the personal quotes add depth—especially where anger, humor, or concern come through, whether from officials, experts, or everyday people.

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Summary

This episode of Apple News Today offers a sharp, accessible look at several global flashpoints, from diplomatic poker around the Persian Gulf to a historic American renovation mired in trouble. The show provides context, historical background, and a variety of perspectives, from White House spokespeople to critical tourists and local survivors of disease, making news events feel current, consequential, and grounded. The Reflecting Pool debacle and World Cup culture shock both highlight how big projects and big events can have surprising, unpredictable public reactions.

Transcript

[Gideon Resnick]

Good morning. With both sides still trading threats, Vice President J.D.

[News Reporter]

vance opens talks with Iran for a permanent peace.

[Vice President J.D. Vance]

If they are willing to give up nuclear weapons ambitions for the long term, then the United States is willing to fundamentally transform our relationship with that country.

[Gideon Resnick]

President Trump's multimillion dollar reflecting pool turns green with algae. The Washington Post explains why the renovation

[News Reporter]

is attracting some tourists for all the wrong reasons.

[Gideon Resnick]

And the World cup travelers finding joy in America's supermarkets and supersized food. It's Monday, June 22nd. I'm Gideon Resnick in for Shemitah Basu. This is Apple News today. US And Iranian negotiators arrived in Switzerland

[News Reporter]

to kick off further peace talks on Sunday. But they're already off to a shaky start.

[Gideon Resnick]

Over the weekend, President Trump exchanged threats

[News Reporter]

with Iran's parliament speaker over clashes between Israel and Hezbollah.

[Gideon Resnick]

Fighting has continued despite the signed deal

[News Reporter]

pledging an end to war on all fronts.

[Gideon Resnick]

Trump said that he would resume attacks

[News Reporter]

on Iran if they failed to restrain Hezbollah, while Iran suggested it was closing off the Strait of Hormuz again, Vice

[Gideon Resnick]

President Vance is leading the talks in

[News Reporter]

Europe and spoke to reporters yesterday.

[Vice President J.D. Vance]

We're all working towards regional peace. There, of course, are going to be sometimes disagreements about precisely how to get there. We but I actually feel great about where we are in Lebanon. There's still some additional wood to chop, but we're going to keep on working at it.

[Gideon Resnick]

BBC analysis of tracking data suggests tankers

[News Reporter]

were still trickling through the strait.

[Gideon Resnick]

But as the Wall Street Journal's Jason Douglas told us, getting the vital waterway back to pre war conditions won't be

[News Reporter]

as straightforward as the sign memorandum suggests.

[Jason Douglas]

The Persian Gulf is clogged with vessels waiting to get out. They will need to figure out how to get those vessels out. You'll need to get new tankers in to start unloading new energy supplies and get those out. So all in all, this is a process that will probably take weeks, could even take months to kind of get things back to some semblance of normality again.

[Gideon Resnick]

But even once those practical challenges are overcome, Iran's initial decision to close the

[News Reporter]

strait back in March could have permanent repercussions.

[Gideon Resnick]

Douglas told us the Iranian regime was

[News Reporter]

following a pattern of countries exploiting geographical or financial choke points to put pressure on the global economy.

[Jason Douglas]

Globalization brought us all closer together. It increased our linkages between our economies, but it also created vulnerabilities.

[Gideon Resnick]

And Douglas says if countries impacted by

[News Reporter]

the closure want to prevent Iran from

[Gideon Resnick]

leveraging it in future conflicts, that will

[News Reporter]

take a massive coordinated effort.

[Jason Douglas]

The Gulf States realize that they were terribly dependent on Iran in a way that in retrospect must seem shocking to them. And they will certainly be investing many billions of dollars in trying to make sure this doesn't happen again.

[News Reporter]

That will require major investments in new pipelines, export routes, crude oil reserves, and more.

[Jason Douglas]

And it really requires a great deal of political will. And those kind of things aren't always in abundant supply, if you like. Right. You know, when the immediate crisis passes, the impetus to kind of fix some of these problems that were exposed kind of fades.

[Gideon Resnick]

Still, now that countries better understand the

[News Reporter]

risks of being so dependent on the

[Gideon Resnick]

strait, Douglas says it's unlikely the waterway

[News Reporter]

ever sees the same level of traffic that it did before the war.

[Jason Douglas]

So these choke points, they do have a kind of diminishing value, because as soon as your adversaries realize that you're going to use them, then they will look for alternatives. It certainly could be months before we see the Strait of Hormuz operating at something like the capacity that it was before, but years, you know, certainly in terms of building alternative supply routes and trying to make sure that this pinch point can't be weaponized again in the way that it was. So I think it's unlikely that we'll ever get back to something that looks like 100%.

[News Reporter]

Upgrades to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool were meant to be a central pillar to Trump's D.C. beautification project.

[Gideon Resnick]

Instead, it's become a growing headache for

[News Reporter]

the White House as the water turns green with algae.

[Gideon Resnick]

The president's decision to drain the 103

[News Reporter]

year old pool and to paint the base what he called American Flag Blue cost roughly $14 million of taxpayer money, more than seven times Trump's estimate. But an algae bloom quickly blossomed, and the paint has already started peeling off in chunks.

[Gideon Resnick]

Maura Judkus is a reporter for the

[News Reporter]

Washington Post, and she's been following the project's ups and downs.

[Maura Judkus]

So there are workers around the clock there who are killing and vacuuming up the algae and using tubes to drain it into drainage areas. So the pool is still quite green in some areas, but it is looking much better.

[Gideon Resnick]

She told us that algae is not actually a new problem.

[Maura Judkus]

Algae has actually been a problem in the reflecting pool for as long as anyone can remember. And this is something that one might expect from a large and shallow body of water. There was a big renovation in 2012 that cost more than $30 million, and it changed the source of the pool's water. But a massive algae bloom quickly followed that job, too. And the Problem really is that algae thrive on heat and sunlight, and those are incredibly abundant in Washington in June.

[Gideon Resnick]

As for the paint, one pool expert

[News Reporter]

told Judkist, the surface may not have been properly prepared to be painted or groundwater may have seeped under the surface leading to the peeling. Trump, meanwhile, pointed the finger elsewhere.

[Maura Judkus]

So the president posted on Truth Social that vandals, quote, took some form of knife or blade and put a 250 foot long gash into the pool. And he alleged that they also poured corrosive and destructive chemicals into the pool.

[Gideon Resnick]

Judka says the Post hasn't been able

[News Reporter]

to corroborate those claims.

[Gideon Resnick]

One man was arrested on charges of

[News Reporter]

destruction of government property for allegedly peeling paint off of the pool.

[Gideon Resnick]

He was later identified as David Hearn,

[News Reporter]

a three time US Olympic canoeist.

[Gideon Resnick]

He denied vandalizing anything. Instead, he said he simply reached his

[News Reporter]

hands in the water to touch peeling paint before being arrested.

[Gideon Resnick]

The headlines about the pool do seem

[News Reporter]

to have attracted some tourists, if not for the reasons the White House had hoped.

[Maura Judkus]

It's a little bit of a Streisand effect where now people are actually going down there to look at the algae and look at the chipping paint because he has made such a thing of how this project was going to, quote, last 100 years. It used to look like garbage, he said, and now it's beautiful. And so it's become kind of a tourist attraction for the missteps in a way.

[Gideon Resnick]

CNN and the Associated Press spoke to

[News Reporter]

people drawn to the scene.

[Tourist 1]

We're spending money on makeup and upkeep when, you know, there's the homeless, you know, situation in D.C. and people need food and, you know, kids in school, summer programs. There's money that, that can be allocated for, but we're paying a pool for 14 million.

[Tourist 2]

They might be able to get it blue for the 4th of July, but it won't stay that way. I doubt it. I'm glad they're trying, but honestly, I don't think you can fight Mother Nature.

[Gideon Resnick]

Last Thursday, the Interior Department described the

[News Reporter]

pool as crystal clear.

[Gideon Resnick]

But by the weekend, Trump had said

[News Reporter]

they would likely need to drain the pool again, citing his vandalism allegations.

[Gideon Resnick]

And according to the New York Times, leaky and broken pipes have long been

[News Reporter]

a problem and still need addressing.

[Gideon Resnick]

Trump has promised to replace thousands of feet of pipe, but so far, no

[News Reporter]

details have been released about that work.

[Gideon Resnick]

It has been just over a month since an Ebola outbreak was declared in

[News Reporter]

the Democratic Republic of Congo. There have been more than 900 confirmed cases and more than 200 deaths.

[Gideon Resnick]

And in recent days, the head of

[News Reporter]

Africa's CDC said that if transmission is not slowed, it could become the worst outbreak on record.

[Gideon Resnick]

That's in part because authorities are struggling

[News Reporter]

to trace potentially infected people. As African CDC's director general, Dr. Jean Casea, told Al Jazeera, we are missing

[Dr. Jean Casea]

more than 26,000 people and we don't know where they are and we don't know if they are contaminating other people. This is why we are worried about this, the way that the outbreak is moving.

[Gideon Resnick]

The World Health Organization and other groups

[News Reporter]

have scaled up their efforts, but some journalists report that the outbreak is outpacing the response.

[Gideon Resnick]

Emmett Livingstone is a reporter who explained to NPR why it's been so difficult

[News Reporter]

to capture the scale of the spread.

[Emmett Livingstone]

The government says 72% of contacts are being traced, but aid workers are very skeptical of this figure. Some told me off the record that it's probably around 40%. What this means in simple terms is that the outbreak is out of control. And of course the that means there's a risk of regional spread. Many people are not turning up to hospitals or health centers and are dying unnoticed. Health responders just don't know where all the cases are.

[Gideon Resnick]

Last week, the US CDC said that

[News Reporter]

it planned to make $107 million available to assist in the response.

[Gideon Resnick]

Saira Madad is an infectious disease epidemiologist at Harvard. She explained to CBS why funding remains a challenge.

[Saira Madad]

Only about 10% of pledged donations have actually made it to the affected areas. It's not as if you're sending money and it's getting there right away. There's an entire process of once funding is shared and sent, then it goes through an entire process of distribution and actually being able to be used on the front lines.

[Gideon Resnick]

Health officials on the ground also say

[News Reporter]

they're confronting challenges of misinformation and disbelief in the virus. Bloomberg reports that TV and radio stations in the DRC in Uganda have started putting out public safety messaging, and volunteers are being trained to communicate with their neighbors to convey the seriousness of the virus.

[Gideon Resnick]

The German public broadcaster DW News spoke

[News Reporter]

with a pastor who said that he survived the strain of Ebola.

[Pastor (Ebola survivor)]

I am the first case, so whenever others feel unwell, they always come back to ask me how I felt before going to the hospital. Some accept it, but others don't believe it. They claim I was paid off and didn't actually have the disease.

[Gideon Resnick]

An official with the World Health Organization said recently that on a scale of

[News Reporter]

0 to 10 for where the response

[Gideon Resnick]

to the outbreak needs to be, she believed.

[News Reporter]

Efforts are currently at 3 or 4. Here are a few other stories we're following today.

[Gideon Resnick]

Europe is bracing for a severe heat

[News Reporter]

wave this week with temperatures nearing 104 degrees on Sunday.

[Gideon Resnick]

It's prompted nationwide warnings, travel disruption and closed schools. Reuters reports that the spike in temperatures is being driven by a mass of

[News Reporter]

hot air moving north from the Sahara, fueled by a strong high pressure system known as the African anticyclone.

[Gideon Resnick]

It was so hot in France that authorities restricted alcohol consumption at a major

[News Reporter]

music festival to, quote, preserve emergency and healthcare services.

[Gideon Resnick]

In India, more than 2 million aspiring

[News Reporter]

medical students had to take one of the world's toughest entrance exams yesterday for a second time.

[Gideon Resnick]

It followed allegations that questions were leaked

[News Reporter]

ahead of the first sitting back in

[Gideon Resnick]

May, students reportedly had to go through

[News Reporter]

airport level security, be frisked, scanned and made to pass through metal detectors on the way to their exams.

[Gideon Resnick]

The social media app Telegram was even

[News Reporter]

blocked due in large part to various alleged exam fraud channels.

[Gideon Resnick]

Young people in India face unemployment at

[News Reporter]

a level of around 15%, and exams

[Gideon Resnick]

like this have taken on even more

[News Reporter]

importance as the pathway to government jobs and lower or no tuition university.

[Gideon Resnick]

And finally, as international travelers are converging

[News Reporter]

on the US for the World cup, they are finding the divine in the

[Gideon Resnick]

mundane, remarking on social media about free ice refill stations, giant supermarkets, and of

[News Reporter]

course, the beauty of ranch dressing.

[Gideon Resnick]

Some Japanese fans in Dallas were especially

[News Reporter]

taken by the state's barbecue offerings and other food, including this fan who spoke

[Gideon Resnick]

with a local ABC affiliate expecting a

[Japanese World Cup Fan]

lot of big food like barbecues with burgers. So the old things in Texas. So I'm so happy to eat everything. Yeah.

[Gideon Resnick]

Beyond the cultural novelty of waffle houses or Walmarts, one expert told ABC News

[News Reporter]

that research shows people remember people more

[Gideon Resnick]

than places, so the memory of a final score might fade in time, but

[News Reporter]

a nicety extended by an American stranger could could last a lifetime.

[Gideon Resnick]

You can find all these stories and

[News Reporter]

more in the Apple News app.

[Gideon Resnick]

And if you're already listening to the news app right now, stick around for the latest episode of Apple News in conversation this week Ahead of America's 250th anniversary, guest host David Greene sat down with professor and author Anna Harwell Cholenza to explore some of the music that's

[News Reporter]

shaped American history, from the Star Spangled Banner to Strange Fruit to Hamilton.

[Anna Harwell Cholenza]

I think we have to remember when it was written and why it was written. And Lin Manuel Miranda wanted to say we shouldn't just cancel the Founding Fathers because of their flaws as humans. What's important about the Founding Fathers is not who they were as people, but the ideas that they set pen to paper. And we still are not yet, you know, the land of the free, home of the brave, but we're working towards that.

[Gideon Resnick]

If you're listening to the podcast app, follow Apple News in conversation to find that episode.

[News Reporter]

And I'll be back with the news tomorrow.

[Sam]

Sam.