A government engineer cut the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool's liner with a knife — the same act President Donald Trump blamed on vandals, a new court filing contends. "The government's own evidence showed that the condition of the liner attributed to Mr. Hearn existed before he touched the Pool," the filing says. On July 13, federal agents photographed damage throughout the pool while a National Park Service engineer accompanied them, the filing says. "The engineer told the agents that he had personally cut loose liner or coating with a knife to prevent the peeling from worsening," the filing says. "The government's own engineer determined that it was better to cut off the peeling sections than to let them flap around," it adds.