Trump awards $6.9M no-bid pool makeover under urgent exemption
President Donald Trump used an 'urgent' exemption to award a $6.9 million no-bid contract to Atlantic Industrial Coatings to repaint the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool blue ahead of the 250th anniversary; the White House says the project will be completed quickly and under budget, but experts caution that changing the pool’s color won’t fix decades of algae, drainage and structural issues, and the contractor’s government-contracting background appears limited.