Nine members of the Kennedy family political dynasty have sued the Trump administration, asking a federal judge to block the president’s plan to build a towering golden arch that they say would cast a shadow over their loved ones’ graves in Arlington National Cemetery.
The family’s complaint says the 25-foot triumphal arch, topped by a winged figure similar to that of Lady Liberty, would “obstruct the clear view of Kennedy’s graves” and “fundamentally alter the experience of visiting” their family’s memorial at Arlington National Cemetery. The project, they say in a press release, risks “permanently diminishing these memorials”.
“A towering arch casting shadows over the graves of our father, mother and uncles, as well as the graves of so many who served our country, would also cast a shadow over our democratic principles, undermining the safeguards established by our elected representatives to protect this sacred land for generations to come,” two of the plaintiffs, Rory Kennedy and Maxwell Kennedy, said in a statement on behalf of the family.
This trial is the latest legal challenge to fall on the arch proposed by the president, modeled on the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. Last week, U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan blocked the Trump administration from moving forward with the project for 14 days.
The Justice Department recently said construction of the arch, modeled after Paris’ Arc de Triomphe, would not be completed until after Donald Trump’s second term ends. On November 6, a federal judge blocked the start of construction on the arch for 14 days.
Trump claimed the arch would be transformed into a “premier military complex” with drone and munitions storage space and custom sniper facilities on the roof and plaza.
The complaint notes that the arch would block the view between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington House, “which were designed to face each other to represent national reunification after the Civil War.”
“This action is intended to protect the sacred spaces that belong to the American people,” the Kennedys said in their statement, noting that their uncles, President John F. Kennedy and Senator Edward Kennedy, as well as their parents Robert and Ethel Kennedy, are buried at Arlington National Cemetery.
“We believe Donald Trump violated the laws and procedures established by Congress to protect this most sacred national memorial.”
The family’s lawsuit argues that the National Park Service and the U.S. Department of the Interior allowed construction of the arch without required congressional approval. He asks the court to cancel the authorization and block the construction of the arch.
The arch is one of several projects around Washington that Trump has undertaken as he remakes the city, from renovating one of its famous public golf courses to threatening the demolition of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. These plans could soon face greater scrutiny after Democrats take control of Congress.
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