President Trump was standing in front of the Reflecting Pool on Monday afternoon, doing a little reflecting of his own.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor some reason,\u201d he was saying, the Washington Monument mirrored in the newly reopened pool behind him, \u201cthe sitting president doesn\u2019t win the midterms. But we gave this a very strong shot.\u201d<\/p>\n
It was the day before the election, and the president had decided to come here, a place that excites him, to talk about many of the topics that make him happiest. Trouble is, almost none of those topics have anything to do with the issues that are driving this election.<\/p>\n
At a time when voters have made clear they\u2019re most concerned with the high prices of gas and groceries and a new war in the Middle East, Mr. Trump used his final in-person appearance before Americans head to the polls to talk about drain pipes, top soil, limestone, fountains and his favorite kind of columns.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe pipes now are totally renovated,\u201d Mr. Trump said. Propped up next to him was a poster board showing an aerial view of the pool, with this caption: \u201cBack, and more beautiful than ever!\u201d<\/p>\n
The \u201cbrand-new pipes,\u201d Mr. Trump said, are \u201cvery important in terms of the algae and other things. And it\u2019s a complete job, and we\u2019re very proud of it.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Lincoln Memorial in front of him, Mr. Trump addressed a small audience seated in folding chairs. There were a few dozen National Park Service employees, reporters, White House officials and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum. At one point early in his speech, Mr. Trump beckoned to a young man who bounded up onstage with a stack of large printouts under his arm.<\/p>\n
\u201cGreat,\u201d Mr. Trump said as he took the stack and began rifling through it. He held up one of the printouts. It was a photograph of what looked like a rusty drainpipe. Another photograph showed a dumpster filled with detritus.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is another example of what it looked like just at water level and below,\u201d he explained as he waved another photograph aloft. Every so often, he would look over his shoulder to check on the body of water behind him. \u201cIt\u2019s a massive piece of pool,\u201d he said, sounding impressed. It looked clean, dark and choppy on this early November day.<\/p>\n