Company owned by Trump donor won $1.7 million no-bid Reflecting Pool cleaning contract

Key Points:

• The federal government awarded a $1.7 million no-bid contract to Green Water Solutions, a company owned by Trump donor John J. Cafaro, to install a "Nano Bubble" water filtration system in the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, amid President Trump's push to overhaul the pool.
• Cafaro, a GOP donor with past campaign finance violations, has contributed extensively to Trump-linked groups and owns a home near Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort; his company previously worked on a Trump golf club pond and holds another government contract for sewage treatment.
• The contract was justified by the Department of the Interior under a rule for "unusual and compelling urgency" to complete the project before the nation's 250th birthday, citing the specialized nature of the Nano Bubble technology and limited suppliers.
• Shortly after water was reintroduced to the pool, algae blooms reappeared and the newly installed sealant began peeling, though the Interior Department attributed the algae to normal startup conditions and stated the filtration system effectively killed it.
• A separate $14.7 million no-bid contract was awarded to install the pool's sealant; White House officials denied involvement in the contract selection, and Cafaro claimed Trump was unaware of his company's role in the project.