President Donald Trump unloaded on U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro after her office dropped charges against a former Olympian accused of vandalizing the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.
Trump said Monday from the Oval Office that Pirro made the wrong call when federal prosecutors moved to dismiss the case against David Hearn, a former Olympic canoeist accused of damaging the newly repaired pool.
Pirro’s office said in court that the damage “was the result of a botched installation and not vandalism as initially represented by DOI.”
Trump was not buying it.
“Jeanine Pirro made a mistake,” Trump said bluntly — doubling down on his take from a Truth Social post Saturday. “There was vandalism.”
The president gave a lengthy account of the work done on the reflecting pool and admitted he was not “100% thrilled with the contractor.”
But Trump said that did not change his view that the pool was vandalized and that Pirro backed down under pressure.
“Frankly, I think she choked,” Trump said. “Because the judge was really vicious. Instead of going after the people that did it, the judge went after her and went after her department, and I guess she choked. I don’t know what the hell happened.”
The case had drawn national attention after Hearn, 67, of Bethesda, Maryland, was indicted last month on a felony destruction-of-government-property charge.
Federal prosecutors initially accused him of ripping part of the recently installed blue sealant from the bottom of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool on June 19.
🚨 WOW. President Trump appears to be LIVID with US Attorney Jeanine Pirro dropping the charges against an accused Reflecting Pool vandal
“I was disappointed with Jeanine Pirro — REALLY disappointed with Jeanine Pirro! She folded like an umbrella. And people get away with… pic.twitter.com/Qwus8aB5zA
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) August 3, 2026
At the time, Pirro’s office said the alleged damage exceeded $1,000.
The charge carried a potential maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.
But prosecutors later reversed course, saying new information from the Department of the Interior showed the damage was connected to flawed work by the contractor, Atlantic Industrial Coatings, and a rushed effort to complete the project before America 250 events around Independence Day.
That explanation put Pirro at odds with Trump, who has made the pool renovation a personal point of pride and has repeatedly said vandals were responsible for the damage.
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Asked by MS NOW’s Jake Traylor whether he was reconsidering Pirro’s role, Trump refused to answer the question and turned on the reporter instead.
“You’re fake news,” Trump said. “Don’t ever talk again. You’re fake. You’re one of the worst in the business. Fortunately, nobody watches you.”
Moments later, Trump went back to Pirro and made clear his anger had not cooled.
“I was disappointed with Jeanine Pirro!” Trump said — raising his voice. “Really disappointed with Jeanne Pirro! She folded like an umbrella! And people get away with things, and it’s a disgrace!”
The blast was striking because Pirro has long been one of Trump’s most visible allies, moving from conservative television to one of the most powerful federal prosecutor posts in the country.
But Donald Trump has shown little patience for allies who, in his view, retreat when the fight reaches a courtroom.
The dispute now leaves Pirro defending a Justice Department reversal that the president himself is publicly rejecting.
For Trump, the issue is simple, the National Mall was damaged, the case was brought, and he believes prosecutors should have stayed the course.
In Trump’s view, Jeanine Pirro did not just lose the case.
She folded.
