Speaking at an unrelated Oval Office event, Trump ducked questions about whether he'd fire Pirro, a former Fox News host and longtime ally he handpicked as top federal prosecutor in the nation's capital. But the president kept up his drumbeat of sharp criticism, saying he remained disappointed by her assessment that damage to the Reflecting Pool was the result of shoddy construction, not vandalism.
“Frankly, I think she choked because the judge was really vicious. Instead of going after the people that did it, the judge went after her and went after her department, and I guess she choked,” Trump said in response to a reporter's question after he signed an executive order for military spouses. “I don’t know what the hell happened.”
The move to dismiss charges against David Hearn was an embarrassing setback for the Justice Department and marked a rare moment during Trump’s second term of an aide or political appointee openly defying him.
After initially posting on social media over the weekend, “I disagree 100% with Jeanine Pirro,” Trump was still fuming two days later, insisting for several minutes that vandalism had marred the troubled project.
“I was disappointed with Jeanine Pirro, really disappointed,” the president said Monday. “She folded like an umbrella.”
Pirro seen later at the White House
Though she has not commented publicly since Trump's initial social media post criticizing her, Pirro was spotted walking into the White House on Monday evening. Also spotted was Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, who has been outspoken in defending the president's suggestions that vandalism was to blame.
Hearn has said he was on a bike ride June 19 when he reached in to examine the pool’s newly peeled coating and briefly touched a chunk attached to the side of the pool. But he said he obeyed a park worker who told him to let go of it.
Republican Louisiana Sen. John Kennedy said of Pirro, “All I know is, you better not go before a federal judge and make allegations you can’t back up.”
A lawyer who sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee, Kennedy added, “They are very serious about it.”
“I think he’s going to sue” or file for compensation under the Federal Tort Claims Act, Kennedy said of Hearn. “I mean, I would.”
Trump denies knowing the contractor, contradicting his own past comments
Meanwhile, charges also have been dropped against three other people charged in the same D.C. court with misdemeanors for allegedly removing pieces of paint from the Reflecting Pool, according to online court records.
Justin Carreno, Cameron Thiers and Sophie Dennison-Gibby all pleaded not guilty during their initial court appearances last month. They had been accused of destruction of property with a value less than $1,000.
