By Douglas V. Gibbs
A listener on one of my programs posted in the chat a question about Trump’s plans to build a giant arch. This particular chatter tends to troll the chat room, and I had not seen the news about President’s Trump’s proposal regarding the Triumphal Arch, so I told him I’d get back to him on it. I didn’t want to fall into a gotcha moment in the middle of my broadcast.
It turns out that President Trump has indeed proposed the construction of a 250-Foot arch near Arlington National Cemetery. The White House has released renderings of the proposed triumphal arch, a structure that would sit on the Memorial Circle roundabout at the southwestern end of the Arlington Memorial Bridge along the Potomac River. If constructed, it would become the tallest triumphal arch in the world.
Why not? We’ve built grand monuments before.
The renderings show the towering arch featuring a central figure resembling the Statue of Liberty, along with gilded eagles and lions. Inscriptions on the structure include “One Nation Under God” and “Liberty and Justice For All.”
The base of the monument, if it gets constructed, would be guarded by four gilded lions, while two large eagles flank the central figure.
According to sources, at 250 feet tall, the arch would stand more than twice the height of the Lincoln Memorial, which rises to 99 feet. It would also exceed the height of Mexico City’s Monumento a la Revolucion by about 30 feet and tower more than 80 feet above the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, which the design closely resembles.
With America’s 250th birthday coming up, it makes sense that Trump would want to construct something for the semiquincentennial celebration. He builds things. That’s one of the things he does. And all I remember us getting in 1976 for the 200 year bicentennial was a mural along the 91 Freeway in Southern California, which was finally, recently, touched up and made readable, again.
Trump believes America’s capital ought to be adorned with things that echo America’s greatness. He’s got a number of plans for things like a National Garden of American Heroes, which would feature 250 statues, as well as renovations to the White House, and of course the Triumphal Arch.
“I am pleased to announce..[a] MOST BEAUTIFUL Triumphal Arch…This will be a wonderful addition to the Washington D.C. area for all Americans to enjoy for many decades to come!” the president said on X.
Funding for the arch would come in part from federal sources, as opposed to the Grand Ballroom with is slated to be paid for by nothing but private funds. A recent spending plan for the National Endowment for the Humanities includes $2 million allocated directly for the project, along with $13 million in matching grants reserved for its development.
Trump showcased models of the arch during a White House fund-raising event tied to his proposed $400 million ballroom, a 90,000-square-foot expansion that would replace the East Wing.
Approval for the arch remains forthcoming.
— Political Pistachio Conservative News and Commentary
