Trump says his big arch would be a ‘military complex’ with drones and snipers
US president claims massive monument will store ammunition as critics call national security framing a legal pretext
US President Donald Trump said Sunday that the massive arch he wants to build between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington National Cemetery would become a “top grade military complex” able to host drones and snipers while storing ammunition.
It is one more example of how Trump is insisting that his initiatives to beautify the White House and the city are also serving a defensive purpose. Trump has been calling the new White House ballroom a “military complex” and arguing it is necessary for national security purposes.
The Pentagon said it had no information beyond the US president’s statement.
Trump’s announcement also comes as the arch, like his other projects, faces legal challenges. Though the arch has received early approval from the US Commission of Fine Arts, whose members were all tapped by Trump, a group of three veterans and an architectural historian sued, saying the project needs to be approved by Congress.