A group of veterans on Thursday sued to halt President Donald Trump’s plan to build a new monument in Washington, D.C., alleging the proposal first requires congressional approval.
Three Vietnam War veterans and a historian filed the lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. They are seeking to block Trump from building the towering “Independence Arch” between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington National Cemetery, challenging his plan to build a monument without direct legislative approval, and alleging it erodes the historical integrity of the city’s existing monument landscape.
“The planned Arch, by obstructing the symbolic and inspiring view from Arlington National Cemetery to the Lincoln Memorial, would dishonor their military and foreign service and the legacy of their comrades and other veterans buried at Arlington National Cemetery,” read the lawsuit, brought by veterans Michael Lemmon, Shaun Byrnes, and Jon Gundersen, along with retired Virginia historian Calder Loth.
“Its location on Memorial Circle would situate the monument on an axis between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington National Cemetery, obstructing a line of sight that was designed to represent the unification of the Nation following the Civil War and that has existed for nearly a century,” court documents continue. “It will block historically significant reciprocal views between those two memorials that were consciously designed and that have existed for nearly a century. It will dominate the views of and the relationship between the surrounding memorials.”
The plaintiffs cite the Commemorative Works Act and other related statutes, arguing that the project requires congressional approval and an extensive review process.
Aside from aesthetic and historical concerns, the plaintiffs alleged the arch could pose a hazard to air travel at nearby Reagan National Airport. Such an issue would require a project notice to the Federal Aviation Administration, but officials have not submitted such notice to the FAA’s Obstruction Evaluation/Airport Airspace Analysis site, they alleged.
In response to the Washington Examiner‘s request for comment, the White House contended the arch would only “enhance” the visitor experience at Arlington National Cemetery.
“The Triumphal Arch in Memorial Circle is going to be one of the most iconic landmarks not only in Washington, D.C., but throughout the world. It will enhance the visitor experience at Arlington National Cemetery for veterans, the families of the fallen, and all Americans alike, serving as a visual reminder of the noble sacrifices borne by so many American heroes throughout our 250 year history so we can enjoy our freedoms today,” White House spokesman Davis Ingle said in a statement. “President Trump will continue to honor our veterans and give the greatest Nation on earth — America — the glory it deserves.”
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The arch is part of Trump’s vision to mark the United States’s 250th birthday this year. It could reportedly be up to 250 feet tall, far eclipsing the Lincoln Memorial’s roughly 100-foot structure, for comparison. The president said last December that he hoped to begin construction of the arch within two months.
“I’d like it to be the biggest one of all,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One in late January. “We’re the biggest, most powerful nation.”
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