A federal judge is poised to halt construction of President Donald Trump’s proposed triumphal arch in Washington, dealing an early legal blow to the monument project.
The ruling threat follows an 8-4 vote by the National Capital Planning Commission late Thursday that cleared the path for the 250-foot structure to proceed toward construction.
Critics argue the arch’s placement in Memorial Circle, a Washington traffic roundabout adjacent to Arlington National Cemetery, would cast shadows across thousands of military graves.
A Washington Post analysis cited by multiple speakers at Thursday’s hearing confirmed that thousands of burial sites at the cemetery would fall under the structure’s shadow at various points in the day.
The attorneys general of both Washington and Virginia filed suit against the project earlier this week, adding to the legal pressure mounting against the administration’s plans.
The 250-foot arch, inspired by the Arc de Triomphe in Paris but designed to surpass it in height, would be crowned with a gold statue resembling the Statue of Liberty.
The monument would stand on the opposite bank of a historic bridge from the 99-foot Lincoln Memorial, effectively dwarfing one of the capital’s most recognizable landmarks.
Commission chair Mark Paoletta, a White House official appointed by Trump, drove the vote to a swift conclusion after one commissioner noted “the project proponent is looking for a decision tonight.”
Six of the panel’s 12 seats are held by Trump appointees, with two additional seats occupied by Republican congressional allies, giving the administration firm control over Thursday’s outcome.
Washington city council chair Mendelson challenged the legal foundation of the project, arguing that original plans for the Memorial Bridge site were “quite clear” in their intent to build two columns supplementing the Lincoln Memorial, not overwhelmed it.
The Trump administration counters that the arch fulfills a century-old vision for the site that Congress had already authorized, sidestepping the question of whether separate congressional approval is needed.
Paoletta closed the hearing with a pointed defense of the project: “I believe more than ever that this triumphal arch should be approved by this commission,” adding that “this arch does not represent partisanship or politics.”
Trump himself described the structure to reporters at the White House as “like the Arc de Triomphe, but better, more beautiful actually, much more beautiful.”
Veterans groups, conservation organizations, and Democratic officials have argued the arch dishonors the solemnity of Arlington National Cemetery, the final resting place for hundreds of thousands of American service members.
The arch is one of several ambitious redesign proposals Trump has pursued for the nation’s capital, alongside plans for 500 historical statues along the Potomac River and a ballroom larger than the White House.
A separate Trump proposal to revamp the East Potomac Golf Links was already halted by a judge after the administration moved to cut down hundreds of trees at the historic waterfront course.
