In Other News · United States · Politics

Source: Axios

President Trump extolled his administration's Reflecting Pool project, dug up debunked claims of vandalism and applauded the new White House helipad in a Monday pre-Election Day speech.The big picture: Trump's deep focus on remaking the nation's capital has taken center stage as the clock ticks down to midterm elections.Driving the news: "The pool is now better and more beautiful than it's ever been before, and we're very proud of it," Trump said in Monday's speech, adding, "We went through a lot with vandalism."But Trump's own Justice Department dropped vandalism charges against former Olympian David Hearn, whose case was later killed by a judge after prosecutors acknowledged that faulty installation caused the damage to the Pool.Trump added the administration was "giving serious thought" to renaming the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool to the "Trump Reflecting Pool," before later saying he was kidding.Throughout the speech, he held up printed images he identified as pipes, joints and other Pool materials. He also showed an image that appeared to show "8647" sprayed onto the base of the emptied pool, claiming "that was a Comey phrase" — a reference to his former FBI director and top foe.Zoom out: He also discussed his White House renovation projects,...