Recent articles
August 7, 2026
How the Reflecting Pool Came to Mirror Trump’s Washington
A hospitality manager for the Trump Organization traveled to Las Vegas to find a solution to problems at a national landmark. This is the untold back story of the fallout.
www.nytimes.com
August 3, 2026
Documents Undercut Trump’s Claims About Bears Ears National Monument
President Trump said recreation in Bears Ears National Monument was virtually impossible. Documents reviewed by The New York Times show officials knew otherwise.
www.nytimes.com
July 13, 2026
Trump Sharply Cuts the Size of Two National Monuments in Utah
Native American tribes and environmental groups are expected to challenge the move to shrink the Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monuments.
www.nytimes.com
July 10, 2026
Trump Cuts Habitat Protections for Endangered Species
The move ends a safeguard that had been in place for 50 years and could open up crucial habitats to drilling and mining.
www.nytimes.com
July 10, 2026
Trump Administration Taps Climate Science Critic to Oversee Flagship Report
Matthew M. Wielicki has criticized the scientific consensus on global warming as alarmist. Now he’ll oversee a major federal report on the topic.
www.nytimes.com
July 2, 2026
National Parks Can Continue to Remove Signs That Trump Calls ‘Negative’
The decision was a win for the Trump administration as it pushes to remove material that the president has called inappropriate or “woke.”
www.nytimes.com
July 2, 2026
Bombs Bursting in Air Means Hours of Smoke and Confused Dogs in D.C.
Organizers want the July 4 fireworks in the nation’s capital to break the world record. But the fun will also come with air pollution and possibly headaches for pet owners and zoo keepers.
www.nytimes.com
July 1, 2026
A Wildlife Regulator’s Family Business Had a Permit to Renew. She Stepped In.
Jenifer Chatfield, a top official at the Interior Department, faces scrutiny from ethics experts for actions that could help her family’s business.
www.nytimes.com
June 29, 2026
Another Trump Administration Payment to Stop Offshore Wind Farm
It was the fourth such deal struck by the administration to get companies to forfeit their offshore wind leases.
www.nytimes.com
June 26, 2026
How the Reflecting Pool Turned Green: Missing ‘Bubblers’ and a Rush Job
Bulky “nanobubbler” machines were carted off ahead of a promotional event for President Trump’s Ultimate Fighting Championship birthday party.
www.nytimes.com
June 26, 2026
What to Know About Problems at the Reflecting Pool and Trump’s Claims of Vandalism
The administration has provided little evidence to back up some of his assertions about the Lincoln Memorial pool. Experts say other factors could have caused the major problems that have plagued it.
www.nytimes.com
June 23, 2026
Trump Says Vandals Sabotaged the Reflecting Pool. Internal Documents Raise Doubts.
The documents do not indicate that the peeling blue coating and algae blooms were caused intentionally.
www.nytimes.com
June 22, 2026
Trump on the Shabby Condition of the Reflecting Pool: Not My Fault
President Trump said the blooms of green algae and the peeling polyurethane had nothing to do with the rushed $16.4 million makeover he had ordered.
www.nytimes.com
June 22, 2026
Interior Department Moves to Relax Rules for Drilling on Public Lands
A pair of proposals from the Trump administration would lower costs and weaken requirements for fossil fuel companies that drill on federal property.
www.nytimes.com
June 18, 2026
Trump Administration Backs Off Plan to End Ocean Monitoring System
The reversal comes after the Senate passed a bipartisan bill on Wednesday to block the removal of deep-sea monitoring instruments.
www.nytimes.com
June 15, 2026
Algae Is Turning the Reflecting Pool Green. Again.
Algal blooms have hit the site, between the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument, after a $14.2 million repair project.
www.nytimes.com
June 13, 2026
Judge Blocks National Parks From Removing ‘Negative’ Signs and Depictions of Slavery
The ruling accused the Trump administration of engaging in censorship by taking down materials at parks across the country.
www.nytimes.com
June 4, 2026
Trump Offers Funds for First New U.S. Coal Plants in 13 Years
The president announced a total of $700 million in federal money to reinvigorate the domestic coal industry, which has been in decline for decades.
www.nytimes.com
June 2, 2026
New York Sues Trump Administration Over TotalEnergies Wind Farm
The lawsuit argues that it is illegal to pay the French energy giant TotalEnergies $795 million to cancel a planned wind farm off New York.
www.nytimes.com
May 30, 2026
Trump Lifts Restrictions on Off-Road Vehicles on Public Lands
The president rescinded two executive orders that led to prohibitions on the use of the vehicles in most national parks.
www.nytimes.com
May 27, 2026
National Park Entrance Fees Are Funding Trump’s D.C. Projects
The administration is spending at least $67 million worth of fees paid by visitors to national parks on fixing D.C. fountains and the Reflecting Pool.
www.nytimes.com
May 21, 2026
Trump Eases Restrictions on Climate ‘Super Pollutants’
The administration is delaying a phaseout of hydrofluorocarbons, potent planet-warming chemicals used in air-conditioning and refrigeration.
www.nytimes.com
May 19, 2026
Manager at Trump’s N.J. Golf Club Helped Plan Reflecting Pool Repairs
David Schutzenhofer, a Trump Organization employee, reached out to one of the vendors the government later hired for the iconic site near the Lincoln Memorial, documents show.
www.nytimes.com
May 12, 2026
Reflecting Pool Repairs Appear Uneven and Behind Schedule, Officials Say
Work on the iconic National Mall basin appears behind schedule. President Trump initially said he had picked the contractor, then said he did not know it.
www.nytimes.com
May 11, 2026
Trump Administration to Scrap Rule Encouraging Conservation
The Biden-era measure was intended to protect millions of acres from industrial development and the effects of climate change.
www.nytimes.com