WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump says vandals are to blame for large swathes of dead grass on the National Mall near the World War II Memorial, where he built a stage and hosted crowds for his Fourth of July celebration. Trump made the accusation in a social media post on Sunday without saying why he believes it is the work of vandals rather than grass trampled during Independence Day festivities. The Republican president posted a photo showing a once grassy area next to the World War II Memorial, now patchy and brown across much of the sprawling lawn. “Look what VANDALS did to the grass connecting the vandalized World War II Memorial and the vandalized Reflecting Pool, which will be open again, and better than ever, shortly,” Trump said on his Truth Social platform. “Anyone who thinks the Reflecting Pool wasn’t vandalized should go back to Law School!” he added. Trump has repeatedly blamed vandals for damage to his renovation projects in the nation’s capital, often without evidence and sometimes despite opposing accounts from his officials. Trump lashed out at U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro this month after her office concluded that damage to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool was the result of poor construction and not the work of vandals, as Trump claimed. Authorities announced an arrest Friday in connection with vandalism at the World War II Memorial, after the words “Clean Hands, Dirty $” were found painted on the monument and bubbles filled a fountain. Pirro said felony charges were being filed against Melissa L. Farris, who was in custody and could not be reached for comment. A woman identified on her Facebook page as Melissa Lovewell posted a video Thursday in which she is seen removing cans of spray paint from her purse and then painting the monument. “I’ll wait here until they arrest me for spraying our veterans’ fountain,” he says. “It was me. I’m doing it. It’s on camera.” The woman was identified by her Kentucky driver’s license as Melissa L. Farris, of Elizabethtown, Kentucky, according to an arrest warrant. Charging documents in that case do not mention the grass area that Trump highlights in his new claims. Authorities said Farris had previously been arrested for camping on federal property a few blocks from the World War II Memorial, but not in the area cited by Trump. That stretch of grass is where a large stage was built and crowds gathered to hear Trump and watch fireworks at a Fourth of July event celebrating the nation’s 250th birthday. Trump claimed, without providing evidence, that more than 400,000 people attended the event before a storm hit the area and delayed his remarks. Photos of that moment, taken by a webcam atop the Washington Monument, show a large bandstand and seating areas covering almost the entire lawn that Trump now says has been vandalized. Associated Press photographs from the following days showed workers removing the structures, revealing damaged brown grass beneath. On August 1, Trump posted a different photo of the same area that appears to show the numbers “86 47” (which federal officials say constitutes a threat against Trump, the 47th president), emblazoned on the grass. He cited it as evidence refuting Pirro’s conclusion, calling it “a pure case of VANDALISM, which included the grass.” “There may have been some difficulties with the contractor, but the major damage was caused by VANDALISM!” wrote. Those numbers are not visible in the photo Trump posted on social media on Sunday.
