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President Trump threatening prison time for anyone damaging renovated sites in the nation's capital, writing, "Security is watching very carefully for the almost 70 other monuments, statues, and fountains that we renovated throughout Washington DC. If anyone attacks any of them, they get as much as 10 years in jail. In any event, go check it out. The reflecting pool is magnificent."
Well, it comes as we are learning more about what was a very little known company that is now trying to save the reflecting pool from an algae infestation. Sunland Servati is out front in the middle of the political tidal wave. This man is in charge of keeping water in the reflecting pool crystal clear. We've never done a pool, but the water is relatively the same as the water that you would see out in a regular lake somewhere, right? You're treating it for algae and bacteria. How clean does President Trump want to get this project? I don't know the answer to that question yet, but since it was really blue last week, I think he liked that.
In his first TV interview, Chaz Anton, the CEO of Greenwater Services, defended its patented ozone nanobubbler, a new technology that's costing $1.7 million and that the Trump administration is building as the state-of-the-art fix for the algaidden pool. Ozone is 3,000 times faster and 50 times more powerful than chlorine. And it's able to stay in the water, travel through the water, find the toxins that it needs. That's why we're able to treat it from both ends and treat the whole pool.
But the project has been plagued with other problems, too. From the new blue bottom peeling up to Trump blaming without evidence, left-wing vandals. The reflecting pool is so beautiful, they tried to destroy it, prompting Trump to announce they'll need to drain the pool again. We'll fix it right after the 4th of July. Meanwhile, the small Ohio company has been thrust into the national spotlight for their role. What's your understanding of why the original bloom happened? How it happened? I don't know. It could be some of it could have come from the pipes. Could somebody have dumped some stuff in there? Anything's possible in the middle of the night.
In April, the company was given a no bid contract from the Trump administration, bypassing a competitive bidding process. The company's co-owner is JJ Cafaro, a longtime supporter and donor to President Trump and neighbor living near his Mara Lago Club. JJ Cafaro from Florida and from Cleveland. He's a man who made a lot of money in Cleveland, does a good job and a fantastic man. In 2001, Kafaro pleaded guilty to conspiracy to bribe Representative James Trafficant and separately pleaded guilty in 2010 for a campaign finance violation.
The Interior Department says the White House was not involved in the selection process for any contract and did not weigh in on the company selected full stop. And the company has also tried to distance itself from Kafaro, saying he is an Ohio-based businessman who invested in the Ohio-based company after the owner showed him research done on local Ohio bodies of water. A spokesperson for the company said he has no involvement in the day-to-day operations.
Earlier this month, Kafaro defended his company's technology, saying he believes the public scrutiny over the reflecting pool is from people who don't seem to like Trump. And there's been some speculation that the Trump administration perhaps possibly added to the problems down here at the reflecting pool. There had been four temporary ozone nanoblair machines that were seen in the reflecting pool behind me, but those were instructed by the National Park Service to be taken out for a 24-hour period in mid June. And that was the same time that the president had hosted a big UFC photo op down here on the National Mall.
Now, meantime, the company has said that the permanent nano ozone technology is in place. It was actually installed um off of the reflecting pool. You'll see in this area behind me, um, that is where the permanent machine is in place and we got exclusive photos of that being installed. Aaron, CNN has exclusive new reporting on the more than $14 million no bid contract renovation to the DC reflecting pool, which has now been fenced off. Company that worked on the pool more than 15 years ago was apparently approached about the current remodel, but refused the job, partly because the rush to have it completed by July 4th and partly because the Trump administration wanted the bottom of the pool to be blue.
The project is a priority obviously for President Trump, but since the repairs, green algae returned to the pool and pieces of the American flag blue lining have been seen peeling off. The pool is expected to be drained and repaired again after July 4th celebrations. CNN's Sunland Surf is there now. So, what did you learn about this other company? Yeah, Anderson. This is a New Jerseybased company called Sika and they were part of these renovations many years ago during the Obama administration. Um, and they were actually contacted by the Trump administration to have part and take part in this renovation. uh now and two employees who spoke with us in a condition that we would not reveal their identities of that company said that the company considered it. They looked at the proposal but they ultimately decided against it against being involved this time around for two specific reasons. One, as you said, the demands of the Trump administration that this project I got to ask you about Heyland, I just got to ask you what's going on down there because obviously someone's got a megaphone.
Yeah, I'm glad you asked. Sorry for the for the audio, but I do want to explain what's going on over here. And my photojournalist Manny can move the camera over. There is a bit of a protest, a small protest. Some people um wearing algae shirts out here. Um team algae shirts and other shirts. We've been watching for about, you know, 20 minutes now. They seem to be airing grievances writ large against the Trump administration. Certainly the reflecting pool among some of the top concerns here, but they have listed a whole bunch of concerns from the Trump administration as well as uh Epstein files. There have been many tourists here that have been into minor skirmishes with them. Two young adults came by just a few minutes ago waving US flags, chanting USA, USA. Really speaks to how this reflecting pool Anderson has become u the epicenter of a lot of the political grievances about President Trump. Also the epicenter of people you know uh worried about the direction of the country and certainly has become a flash point um here many tourists I talked to said they came down to the reflecting pool because for the first time because of all the controversy this iconic landmark has created in the last few months. Um, but back on your questions about this company in New Jersey who turned down the opportunity to again work um on this reflecting pool. They turned it down because of the July 4th deadline that the Trump administration wanted this to be completed by. They also turned it down specifically because the request was to paint the bottom of the pool blue. Two employees that we spoke to said that those demands were unfeasible and that's why they decided to sit this out. And should be noted that this is a company with institutional knowledge about this reflecting pool and the renovations. So that just one more layer here into the criticism that's stacking up against this project. And today we saw many Hill Democrats in the House Oversight Committee start to request many documents and information from the contractors who were um solicited to get involved and ultimately accepted uh the contracts to get involved with this next round of renovations.
This has gone from a routine renovation to allegations of criminal allergy, fertilizer sabotage. I mean, I don't even know what kind of a thriller it sounds like I'm talking about right now. Box cutters, threats of a decade in prison. Have you ever seen a president so fixated on on something like this or on monuments to himself? No. And and the answer to almost every question that begins in the last decade of have you ever seen is no. Uh, there's really not a precedent here in America. Uh, this is a um, a kind of weaponized narcissism. Uh, in many ways it's a consuming narcissism uh that the president is indulging in. Uh, the problem is uh, you know, he's living in a reality show. The problem is it's our reality. And uh, I think as we approach this 250th uh weekend uh, I hope that we can remember what we need to uh return to, which is an actual engagement with the principles that the country has to be about giving as well as taking. And this president is very much about