President Donald Trump said Thursday the price tag for his Reflecting Pool renovations in Washington, DC, will be “less than $20 million” after he decided the exterior needed more work.
“I originally thought I’d do it for $2 or $3 million,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. “Just do a base. But now we are fixing up the exterior of it so we will probably be in it for less than $20 million.”
Trump’s comments came as a federal judge heard arguments by a nonprofit suing to stop the project in front of the Lincoln Memorial. The judge did not immediately rule on the motion.
Trump said the exterior work was not included in his original numbers.
“When I went there last week, I saw the exterior was in very bad shape, as well as the interior, so I said, ‘We’re going to fix that too,’” he said.
