Trump slams Jeanine Pirro for dropping Reflecting Pool vandalism cases, says she "choked" - CBS News

President Trump publicly criticized Jeanine Pirro, his handpicked U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, for dropping the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool vandalism cases, saying she "choked" and "folded like an umbrella," according to comments made in the Oval Office on Monday, August 3, 2026.
The Justice Department filed a motion Friday to dismiss vandalism charges against 67-year-old former Olympian David Hearn, stating the Interior Department wrongly attributed damage to the pool's lining to vandalism when "contractor error" and a "botched installation" were actually responsible.
Since Friday, Pirro's office also moved to dismiss or announced it would drop prosecutions against three additional people charged with vandalizing the Reflecting Pool, all of whom faced misdemeanor charges.
Trump had earlier voiced displeasure on Truth Social, writing Saturday that he disagreed "100%" with Pirro's decision, but he ignored reporters' questions about whether he intends to fire her and snapped at one who asked if he was reconsidering her role.
Multiple sources told CBS News that Pirro's job is safe for now; she met with Trump on Monday but did not quit or ask him if she should step down, and Trump did not fire her despite being described as "pissed."
Hearn, a Bethesda, Maryland resident, said he was arrested June 19 after touching the pool during a 64-mile bike ride; his attorneys said the case "should never have been brought" and that the government "owes Mr. Hearn an apology," marking a reversal for Pirro, who had held a news conference announcing the case.