Overruled at Times, Panel Approves Trump's Arch

A federal design panel packed by President Trump has signed off on his plan for a 250-foot commemorative arch near Arlington National Cemetery, pushing the project forward despite broad public opposition and procedural questions. The Commission of Fine Arts voted 4-0 on Thursday to grant what Chairman Rodney Mims Cook Jr. called final approval for the arch, which would stand at Memorial Circle at the Virginia end of the Memorial Bridge but within Washington, DC, boundaries. "This is a very elegant building," Cook said, joined in his praise by several commission members, the Washington Post reports.

One member, Mary Anne Carter, urged restraint in ornamentation to respect the cemetery's "hallowed ground" but left early and did not vote. Two other commissioners did not attend. The remaining members said they want to review details of planned sculptures later. Four lions envisioned as guarding the base of the arch were removed before the vote, per the AP. There had been sentiment on the panel to drop the Lady Liberty-like figure on top of the structure and the two gilded eagles flanking it, but Trump disagreed. The plan approved Thursday no longer has a platform the arch was to be built on.

Ten people who testified Thursday, including on behalf of organizations such as the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the DC Preservation League, opposed the arch on the grounds that it is too big. At the White House, Trump told reporters he thought the vote advancing the arch was "fantastic," saying, "We're the only important and major city that doesn't have one." Trump also has appointed allies to the National Capital Planning Commission, which is scheduled to consider the design June 4.