Vietnam veterans seek court order to halt Trump's proposed arch near Arlington

Three Vietnam veterans and architectural historian Calder Loth have filed a lawsuit seeking a temporary restraining order to stop construction of a 250-foot "Great Triumphal Arch" that President Donald Trump plans to place near Arlington National Cemetery. The plaintiffs argue the structure would block the long-standing view linking the Lincoln Memorial, Arlington House and the cemetery, a sightline the city’s layout was intended to preserve.

"Our plaintiffs are three Vietnam veterans and an architectural historian. All of them have a deep personal relationship with Arlington National Cemetery," said Nicolas Sansone, an attorney with the Public Citizen Litigation Group representing the veterans. "Two of our veteran plaintiffs hope to be buried there."

The National Park Service has noted that the project would have "adverse effects on historic properties," and the agency indicated that such effects could not be fully avoided given the arch’s location. The Trump administration cites a 1925 law that authorized two 166-foot columns that were never built, arguing that this historic authorization permits the new monument without additional congressional approval.

"The idea is that really it's just an institutional question of who gets to decide: Is it one person, the person sitting in the White House, or should it be a democratic deliberative process to figure out what these monuments should look like, where they should be situated, what they should commemorate, and the like," Sansone added.

The veterans contend that the arch, which the president described as the largest in the world, would disrespect the solemn character of the cemetery and disrupt a symbolic view that they consider meaningful. The lawsuit seeks to halt the project pending a determination of whether congressional authorization is required.