Public Citizen, which hosted the event, said it is representing three Vietnam veterans and an architectural historian in a legal challenge to the administration’s plan.
Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., sharply criticized President Donald Trump’s proposed arch near Arlington National Cemetery on Wednesday, calling the project a “vanity” effort and saying she was “pissed off” by what she described as a dishonor to service members buried there.
“I am here because I am pissed off,” Duckworth said during a rally organized by Public Citizen opposing the proposed 250-foot arch at Memorial Circle.
I am pissed that the five-time draft-dodging coward of a commander in chief sitting over there in the White House dares to dishonor the men and women of this country who have put on our colors and sacrificed and served, and now lay at rest in the hallowed grounds of Arlington National Cemetery.”
Duckworth, an Iraq War veteran and Purple Heart recipient, said Trump was using military and national security arguments as a “flimsy excuse” for the proposed structure.
“How dare this coward erect a monument to his own vanity, his own ego,” Duckworth said.
Public Citizen, which hosted the event, said it is representing three Vietnam veterans and an architectural historian in a legal challenge to the administration’s plan. The group argues the arch would obstruct the view between Arlington National Cemetery and the Lincoln Memorial and lacks congressional approval.
Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., also denounced the proposal, arguing memorial arches are traditionally constructed to commemorate major military victories rather than presidents. He called the planned arch a “symbol of a dictatorship” and said Trump’s involvement in the war in Iran should not be celebrated.
Last I checked, we had a Constitution,” Merkley said. “And we are not an imperial state. We are a democratic republic.”
Merkley argued the project would violate the separation of powers because Congress has not authorized or funded it. He said the reported $250 million cost could instead be used for programs including children’s nutrition assistance, Head Start or health care benefits.
Duckworth, the ranking Democrat on the Senate aviation safety panel, also raised concerns about the proposal’s potential impact on air traffic near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. She criticized the idea of putting drones, snipers and tourists atop the same structure in one of the nation’s most congested airspaces.
Americans know this is bulls***,” Duckworth said. “This is bulls***.”
Rep. Don Beyer, D-Va., said Arlington is a sacred place that honors the more than 430,000 people buried there who served the country. He called the proposed arch a “great sacrilege,” criticizing Trump’s draft deferments during the Vietnam War and describing the project as an example of presidential vanity.
Duckworth called on the Pentagon and Federal Aviation Administration to oppose the project, arguing the agencies serve the public rather than the president. She said money allocated for the arch should instead go toward Department of Defense schools, veterans’ health care and mental health services for veterans.
“We can do better,” Duckworth said. “As long as I am alive, as long as I’m here, I’m going to fight to defend our veterans and our military families and our military men and women in uniform.”
