Overview
- The White House sent 12-page renderings to the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts on Friday for a 250-foot arch at Memorial Circle featuring a gilded winged Lady Liberty, two eagles, and four lions with the inscriptions “One Nation Under God” and “Liberty and Justice for All.”
- The Commission of Fine Arts, now filled with Trump appointees after earlier firings, plans to consider the proposal at its meeting next week, and construction has not begun.
- A National Endowment for the Humanities spending plan approved by the budget office reserves $2 million in initiative funds and $13 million in matching grants for the arch, signaling a taxpayer role that still depends on private fundraising to unlock the full amount.
- Vietnam War veterans represented by Public Citizen sued in February to block the project, arguing the administration skipped required steps under the Commemorative Works Act and that Congress must authorize a memorial at this site.
- Preservationists and local critics warn the structure would block the historic view between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington National Cemetery and could raise airspace and traffic concerns near Reagan National Airport for visitors and mourners.