Judge Temporarily Halts Construction of Donald Trump's DC Arch
A federal judge has temporarily halted construction of President Donald Trump's proposed 250-foot "triumphal arch" near Washington, D.C., just hours after a federal planning panel gave the project its final approval.
U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan issued a 14-day temporary restraining order early Friday, Nov. 6, at the request of the District of Columbia and Virginia, which sued over the project last month, The Associated Press reported.
What the Order Blocks
The order bars any construction, excavation, demolition, land-clearing, utility installation, road closures or other work tied to building the arch at Memorial Circle while the court considers the case.
Federal officials must also notify employees, contractors and others involved in the project that the work is prohibited. They have until Nov. 9 to update the court and certify that they are complying.
The ruling came after the Justice Department said excavation and foundation work could begin within days.
The Legal Fight
D.C. and Virginia filed their lawsuit on Oct. 31 against the National Park Service and the Department of the Interior. The suit calls the project "legally indefensible" and argues that Congress never authorized the monument.
The Trump administration disagrees. It argues that Congress approved the arch more than a century ago when it authorized a bridge across the Potomac River.
The states' cases were combined with an earlier lawsuit filed by a group of Vietnam War veterans and an architectural historian, according to Fox News. The veterans argue the arch would interrupt a sightline between Arlington National Cemetery and the Lincoln Memorial that was "carefully designed to symbolise the unification of the country after the Civil War and the strength of a united nation," according to Al Jazeera.
A Late-Night Approval
The judge's order came hours after the National Capital Planning Commission voted 8-4 on Thursday night to approve the project following a nine-hour hearing. About 100 opponents spoke against it, including Democratic lawmakers.
Rep. Don Beyer, a Virginia Democrat, said the arch would "snarl traffic for years, impact the nearby airport" and create public safety risks that the commission had refused to address.
Supporters defended the project. Commission chairman Mark Paoletta, a Trump appointee who also serves as general counsel for the White House Office of Management and Budget, said Trump understands that it is "important to our national identity to display who we are through grand monuments."
"As Trump has often remarked, the great cities around the world have arches: Paris, Rome, London," Paoletta said. Republican Sen. Jim Banks also praised the arch as a monument to American greatness.
What the Arch Would Look Like
Trump first proposed the arch last year to mark America's 250th birthday, comparing it to Paris' Arc de Triomphe. The granite structure would stand 250 feet tall, more than twice the height of the Lincoln Memorial, and 166 feet wide.
Plans call for an observation deck, two gilded eagles, a gilded winged figure holding a torch on top and an "eternal flame." It would sit on Columbia Island at the Virginia end of Arlington Memorial Bridge, across the Potomac River from the Lincoln Memorial.
A recent analysis also found the arch would shade JFK's eternal flame at Arlington National Cemetery. Trump has also said the arch could be converted into a military complex capable of rapidly deploying drones, Fox News reported.
The Federal Aviation Administration said the monument would not be a hazard to air navigation as long as it has proper safety lighting.
What Comes Next
Construction is on hold for at least two weeks while Chutkan weighs the case. The arch is one of several Trump building projects in Washington that have landed in court, including his White House ballroom.
The ruling also comes just days after Democrats won the House and flipped the Senate, which could bring more scrutiny to Trump's Washington projects.
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