Judge blocks construction of Trump's massive 'triumphal arch'

A US federal judge has issued a temporary block on the construction of President Donald Trump's planned "triumphal arch" in Washington.

District Judge Tanya Chutkan ruled that there must be a 14-day hold before any building work can begin as the court considers its legality.

The National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC) had voted earlier on Thursday to approve the project - a 250-foot-tall arch inspired by Paris' Arc de Triomphe.

Opponents of the project have strongly criticised its proposed location next to the Arlington National Cemetery, the resting place for hundreds of thousands of US veterans, arguing that it would block the view of the site.

Rep. Jared Huffman, a Democrat representing California's 2nd congressional district, urged the NCPC on Thursday to reject the project.

"This arch would dishonour America, our ideals and our laws," he said.

"Building this arch in Memorial Circle would disrupt the solemn connection between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington National Cemetery," he continued, adding that the proposal would be nothing more than a "tribute to Donald Trump."

Greg Wischer, of the interior department, argued that the arch would fulfil a "100-year plan to build a monumental work on Columbia Island."

'Military complex'

For his part, Trump has said Washington is the "only one" of the "59 top cities and capitals" in the world to not have a "triumphal arch" but that it would now have "the greatest of them all."

He has also said the structure would be turned into a "top grade military complex."

"I have agreed to convert the magnificent Triumphal Arch, planned since the Civil War Era many years ago, at the Receptive Circle adjoining the Arlington Memorial Bridge, into a top grade Military Complex/Triumphal Arch," he wrote in a post on his Truth Social account in September.

He added that it could be used "to house, store, and have the rapid ability to use large numbers of drones, plus Snipers, on both the roof and plaza areas, and additionally have and hold large quantities of sniper ammunition in storage."

The arch is part of a push by Trump to remodel Washington in his image, which has also seen him restyle the White House and renovate the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.

He also signed an executive order in August 2025 entitled "making federal architecture beautiful again," stating that classical architecture would be the "preferred and default architecture for federal public buildings" in the District of Columbia moving forward.