A model of President Donald Trump’s proposed triumphal arch stands at the Great American State Fair on the National Mall June 27, 2026, in Washington.
Jen Golbeck/AP
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Jen Golbeck/AP
The Commonwealth of Virginia and the District of Columbia filed a lawsuit Saturday to block construction of President Donald Trump’s proposed triumphal arch.
The 45-page lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia called the project “blatantly illegal,” wrote Attorneys General Jay Jones of Virginia and Brian Schwalb of the District of Columbia.
The lawsuit is the latest legal attempt to stop construction of the 250-foot-tall arch, plans for which were unveiled by the Trump administration in October 2025.
The attorneys general also say construction of the arch, which could begin as early as next week, “will inflict irreparable harm” on the District and Virginia, including heavy traffic between the two areas. The arch would be located between Arlington National Cemetery and the Lincoln Memorial. It would be twice the height of the monument honoring the 16th American president.
“Both jurisdictions will need to take immediate and costly steps to assess, respond to, and mitigate these adverse effects,” they wrote in the lawsuit. “These costs are significant and sunk, particularly because Defendants refused to consider them or adequately consult with either jurisdiction during their rushed and predetermined process to approve the Ark and begin construction.”
NPR reached out to the White House and the Interior Department on Saturday for comment on the lawsuit, but did not receive a response.
Trump has previously defended his plan to build the ark and said it would be a “military compound” housing weapons and snipers. The most recent plans for the arch, which will be reviewed by the National Capital Planning Commission, do not include military elements.
U.S. District Court Judge Tanya Chutkin ordered both sides to discuss and agree on a proposed briefing schedule on the motion for a temporary restraining order by Saturday evening.
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