Initial work will begin over the next two weeks on the Trump administration’s controversial 250-foot triumphal arch project, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum announced on Thursday.
“This will be one of the Great Pieces of American Architecture, honoring the history and significance of Arlington Cemetery and befitting the most powerful Capital in the World,” he wrote on X, arguing that various commissions and Congress have proposed that some kind of monument adorn the site for more than a century.
“Despite Congress’s intent, the site became and remains today a barren traffic circle lacking any monumental treatment and significant historic value,” he added. “In fact, the passage extending from Arlington Memorial Bridge to Arlington National Cemetery was meant to serve as an Avenue of Heroes.”
The arch is one of Trump’s many D.C.’s project. It is set to be topped with winged sculptures, on an empty traffic circle near the Memorial Bridge over the Potomac River, between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington Cemetery.
Burgum’s announcement comes as the legal status of the arch is under scrutiny.
The National Capital Planning Commission has yet to offer its final approval for the project, while Democrats argue the administration needs congressional approval to move forward.
The arch also faces a lawsuit from veterans, who argue the arch will tower over the nearby military cemetery and disrupt their experience.
“Frankly, I’m befuddled as to what sort of legal authority the administration thinks it has behind it,” Nicolas Sansone, of Public Citizen, which is representing the veterans, told The Washington Post on Thursday.
Democratic Rep. Don Beyer of Virginia also criticized the announcement.
“Burgum and the Trump Administration are disregarding the risks and rushing this towering monument to Trump’s vanity because they believe Republicans will get crushed in November," he told USA Today. “This project is not even close to being ready for prime time."
The Trump administration, for its part, argues it does not need congressional approval to move forward because Congress ratified a 1924 report calling to build a pair of monumental columns at the site.
The White House also claims support from a Supreme Court decision this week, which allowed construction to move forward on the new White House ballroom because the National Trust for Historic Preservation lacked standing to challenge the project.
The Trump team moved Thursday to dismiss the case trying to stop the arch.
Justice Department lawyers noted the challengers' “distaste for the perceived symbolism of the proposed arch does not establish a concrete and particularized injury” meriting a lawsuit.
The arch, which would stand nearly 90 feet taller than the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, would be among the most significant and large-scale projects from President Trump to renovate Washington, alongside his changes to the White House, his renovation of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool and his effort to beautify various D.C. parks and statues.
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