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By Alex Backus
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Veterans opposed to President Donald Trump’s proposed 250-foot triumphal arch near Arlington National Cemetery are stepping up efforts to block the project, less than two weeks before excavation work at the site is slated to begin.
The arch is one of several construction and renovation projects undertaken or proposed by the Trump administration as part of a broader effort to beautify and renovate parts of Washington. Trump has said the arch, in particular, is intended to honor veterans.
“It’s called the Triumphal Arch. It’s in honor of the veterans,” Trump has said.
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Concerns About Triumphal Arch
VoteVets, a Democratic veterans organization, posted a new video Tuesday featuring veterans and Gold Star families raising concerns about the project’s potential impact on Arlington National Cemetery.
“This isn’t about politics. It’s about letting a burial ground stay a burial ground,” the organization wrote in a post on X.
She pointed to the proposed observation deck, saying: “We don't need tourists overlooking funerals. I'm just appalled.”
Retired Army Major General Paul Eaton, whose father was killed in action during the Vietnam War and is buried at Arlington, raised concerns about the arch disrupting the sight line between the Lincoln Memorial and the cemetery.
Eaton called its proposed placement “entirely inappropriate” and said it “borders on sacrilege.”
Newsweek has reached out to the White House for comment.
Has Construction Started on Trump's Arch?
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum announced on September 3 that excavation work for the proposed Great Triumphal Arch and Military Observation Deck at Memorial Circle would begin within two weeks. Burgum called the project “one of the Great Pieces of American Architecture,” saying it would honor the “history” and “significance” of Arlington Cemetery.
What Legal Challenge Does the Arch Face?
The following day, on September 4, a group of Vietnam War veterans and an architectural historian suing over the proposed triumphal arch sought an emergency court order to halt work on the project.
Veterans Michael Lemmon, Shaun Byrnes, and Jon Gundersen, and architectural historian Calder Loth, argued that the administration could not move forward with the project without congressional approval.
Construction of the arch would “destroy this unobstructed view and the symbolic connection” between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington House that holds “deep meaning to them, thereby degrading plaintiffs’ future visits,” the filing states.
The plaintiffs first sued the Trump administration over the project in February.
On Tuesday, Democratic Representative Chellie Pingree urged House Speaker Mike Johnson to file a lawsuit on behalf of Congress to block the administration from moving forward with the arch.
“Congress has neither appropriated funding nor granted authority for this project under the Commemorative Works Act,” Pingree wrote in a letter to Johnson. “I am asking you to take all necessary steps to file suit immediately, while there is still ground left to save.”
Pingree is the ranking member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies.
What Trump Has Said
While speaking with reporters in April, Trump was asked about the February lawsuit and concerns that the arch would obstruct the view between Arlington National Cemetery and the Lincoln Memorial.
“You got to be kidding,” Trump responded. “This was approved 100 years ago,” he said, referring to earlier plans for monumental structures at the site that were never built.
“Our veterans are the ones that should like it,” Trump said. “It’s called the Triumphal Arch. It’s in honor of the veterans.”
In a February interview with NBC News, Trump said the arch is part of a broader effort to bring “glamour,” “prestige” and “beauty” back to the country, noting that other major cities have arches while Washington does not.
“We’re doing one that will be more magnificent and larger than the Arc de Triomphe in Paris,” Trump said, calling the Paris monument “incredible."
“We’re going to do one that’s going to top it.”
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Where Would the Arch Be Located?
The proposed arch would be located at Memorial Circle on Columbia Island, at the western end of Arlington Memorial Bridge between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington National Cemetery.
It won't be inside Arlington National Cemetery, but adjacent to its main entrance.
What Is the Triumphal Arch?
The arch would stand 250 feet tall and is designed as a monumental gateway celebrating the 250th anniversary of American independence.
In Tuesday’s video, Charles Birnbaum, founding president and CEO of the Cultural Landscape Foundation, said a monument of that height would alter the relationship between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington National Cemetery.
“It will alter that hallowed ground and that feeling and association that everyone has when they experience the cemetery,” Birnbaum said.
The video also points to plans for construction to take place up to 20 hours a day for as long as three years, noting that someone is buried at Arlington “every weekday.”
The group called for the public to weigh in by the end of September ahead of what it says is an upcoming vote by the National Capital Planning Commission, which granted preliminary approval to the project in July but has not yet given final approval.
Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Samantha Beech and Gray R. Thomas
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