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By Andrew Stanton
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President Donald Trump’s administration has unveiled plans for a new Triumphal Arch in Washington, D.C.
Triumphal Arch: What New Plans Show
A filing from the Department of the Interior (DOI) with Washington, D.C.’s Commission of Fine Arts reveals the plans from Harrison Design for the structure.
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The arch would stand 250 feet tall at Memorial Circle near Arlington National Cemetery. The new renderings show a statue of Lady Liberty sitting atop the massive arch, which includes the phrase "One Nation Under God" written in gold. Four golden lions would sit at each corner of the statue’s base.
The full design plans can be seen here.
Trump has said Washington, D.C. was "the only city in the world that's of great importance that doesn't have a triumphal arch."
"It is something that is so special," he said about the D.C. arch. "It will be like the one in Paris but to be honest with you it blows it away."
He referred to Paris’ Arc de Triomphe, which was constructed in the 19th century to honor those who died in the French revolutionary and Napoleonic wars.
Trump has previously teased similar renderings on Truth Social since announcing the proposal.
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Trump's D.C. Arch Has Faced Criticism
Trump has touted the new monument as a feature of the country's 250th anniversary celebrations. However, it has drawn criticism. A lawsuit filed by veterans argued the arch would disrupt sightlines meant to represent the United States' unity following the Civil War.
The group called the arch a "vanity project" and said it had not been authorized by Congress, which has the power to decide on construction on the land close to the Arlington National Cemetery.
“Integrity matters; integrity of the process and integrity of the result. To me, the President’s planned arch will be a continuous visual affront to this principle and a personal affront to people, like me, who have fought for this Nation and devoted their careers to serving it,” Michael Lemmon, a U.S. Army veteran who served in the Vietnam War, said in a press release. "I deeply feel a duty to my fellow veterans buried at Arlington National Cemetery to honor their sacrifice and to protect their memory from being overshadowed by this vainglorious monumental arch."
White House spokesman David Ingle said in response to the lawsuit that Trump "will continue to honor our veterans and give the greatest Nation on earth."
A spending plan for the National Endowment for the Humanities, first reported by CBS News, showed that $2 million in “Special Initiative funds” and $13 million in “matching funds” have been reserved for the arch. The White House has not confirmed how much the arch will cost to build.
In addition to the arch, Trump has been working on a new White House ballroom since his return to office.
What People Are Saying
President Trump told donors in October: "Every time somebody rides over that beautiful bridge to the Lincoln Memorial, they literally say something is supposed be here."
Senator Angus King, a Maine independent who caucuses with Democrats, wrote in a statement last month: "This is a straightforward example of checks and balances, and an exercise of Congressional authority – the Commemorative Works Act could not be clearer: any structure on grounds like this must be approved by Congress on behalf of the American people. Whether it is an arch, an obelisk, a ballroom, or a statue, this is a decision that cannot be made unilaterally when it is on public lands and protected by statute.”
Representative Jared Huffman, a California Democrat, wrote in a March statement: "Americans are having to choose between gas and groceries, and the President's priority is spending millions of dollars on another vanity project—the 'Arc de Trump. For over two hundred years, Congress has held authority over what monuments rise in our nation's capital. The Lincoln Memorial, the World War II Memorial, the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial; every one followed the law and went through Congress. And now, without any legal authority whatsoever, he wants to build himself the largest arch in the world—bigger than the Arc de Triomphe, taller than the Statue of Liberty — on land owned by the American people."
Update 4/10/26, 2:37 p.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.
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