'What a loser': Biden blasts Trump's Reflecting Pool, arch construction

WASHINGTON – Former President Joe Biden called his Oval Office successor a "loser" during a gala in Maryland over the weekend, accusing him of obsessing over "vanity projects" at the White House and Kennedy Center.

Biden ticked off a list of initiatives, including President Donald Trump's construction of what Biden alleged is an "arch in his own honor" and of "hiring his own pool guy to fix the Reflecting Pool."

"Whoa, what a loser," the 46th president said.

USA TODAY has reached out to the White House for comment.

The 47th president has long had a penchant for renovations and construction. He's consistently argued he's working to beautify the nation's capital, from the planned East Wing ballroom to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.

Yet critics have questioned the necessity and rollouts of those projects, especially as the White House has repeatedly said it's focused on cutting government waste, fraud and abuse during Trump's second term.

In April, for example, Trump called the Reflecting Pool a "filthy, dirty" place and said that it was "leaking like a sieve." An analysis of federal contract data by USA TODAY found that 20 days before Trump first announced the renovation, the government had already committed $8.5 million to fix the pool even though the president said it would cost $2 million.

The pool has since been heavily scrutinized as workers have raced to clean up algae blooms that turned it green (after it was painted blue).

"The Reflecting Pool reflects something even worse: the narcissism and incompetence at the core of this administration," Biden said on June 27.

The Trump administration has run into issues in the courts and in Congress over the Kennedy Center and a new White House ballroom. A federal judge last week ordered the Kennedy Center to explain a tarp and scaffolding covering its front entrance after Trump's name was taken down.

Biden's comments came on the two-year anniversary of his disastrous presidential debate performance, which sparked calls within the Democratic Party for him to exit the 2024 election and ushered in the failed candidacy of Kamala Harris.

Contributing: Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy, USA TODAY

Zachary Schermele is the congressional correspondent for USA TODAY. You can reach him by email at [email protected]. Follow him on X at @ZachSchermele and Bluesky at @zachschermele.bsky.social.