As Trump's proposed arch looms over D.C., protesters pin their hopes on the midterms
Activists and veterans are protesting a proposed 250-foot arch in Washington, D.C., championed by President Trump. Critics argue the monument is gaudy, expensive, and disrespectful to the nearby Arlington National Cemetery.
Why it matters
It highlights the tension between political legacy-building and public sentiment regarding national monuments and military honors.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Dozens of activists gathered at Memorial Circle in Washington, D.C., at rush hour Thursday to protest the 250-foot-tall arch that President Trump wants to build there.
Veterans, retirees and lawmakers spoke out — against its scale, its cost, its lack of Congressional approval, its gaudiness, its intrusion on nearby Arlington National Cemetery and more — next to a mockup made of tarp. The real arch, they said, would be 32 times taller.
Politics Trump aims to leave a physical legacy in D.C., bulldozing norms along the way "It's the wrong monument, in the wrong place, at the wrong time, dedicated to the wrong man," said Jon Gundersen, a retired Army veteran and former Foreign Service officer who is one of the Vietnam War veterans suing the Trump administration over the arch.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in