Articles
Trump arch plan violates ‘reverence' of Arlington National Cemetery, Beyer says
Washington,
June 1, 2026
Originally posted on: NBC 4 Washington
One of the president's latest passion projects is getting new pushback from congressional Democrats. Virginia Democrat Rep. Don Beyer is cosponsoring a bill to block President Donald Trump's proposed Triumphal Arch that would stand 250 feet tall between Arlington National Cemetery and the Memorial Bridge. “Everyone I've talked to in Virginia and D.C. is horrified by it, partly because it is so tasteless,” Beyer told News4. “It begins with reverence for the people that are buried here.” Several members of Beyer's own family are buried in the cemetery — his grandparents, parents and sister. Beyer said the administration can't build on the land that would block the cemetery's view of the Lincoln Memorial. There's also a fight over whether Trump can use taxpayer dollars to fund, or even partially fund, the arch. The administration hasn’t offered a cost estimate. When previously asked by reporters if Congress has to sign off on the project, Trump said, “No we don't. No, no. We're doing it. The land is owned by the Interior Department. We don't need anything from Congress.” Beyer disagrees. “There was a commemorative act passed that was 34 years ago that specifically said nothing could be built on this land without Congress' approval,” he said. Beyer's bill has nearly three dozen Democrats on board, and he believes he'll get some Republican support when representatives return to Washington later this week. But the president's design has already cleared final approval by the Commission of Fine Arts, a group packed with Trump appointees. “It's such a glaring, almost tribute to his own ego. It doesn't memorialize anything,” Beyer said. The National Capital Planning Commission, a separate federal agency that approves construction on federal land, has the arch on the agenda at its June meeting. |
