Donald Trump is once again making headlines with his ambitious vision for the nation’s capital. The former president has announced plans for a monumental arch, dubbed the ‘Arc de Trump,’ to commemorate America’s 250th anniversary. This proposed structure bears a striking similarity to the iconic Arc de Triomphe in Paris.
In a grand announcement held in the East Room on Wednesday, Trump presented the idea to an audience of donors, who have also funded a new 90,000-square-foot White House ballroom. He displayed a model of the proposed arch, revealing its intended location across from the Lincoln Memorial at the Arlington Memorial Bridge entrance. Trump pointed out, “That’s Arlington Memorial Bridge,” as he described the site. “At the end, there’s a circle built 150 years ago, with two columns on each side, but nothing in the center.”
Trump further elaborated, “Historically, there were plans for something there, but the Civil War disrupted those intentions. It’s a valid reason.” He shared that over a century ago, a statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee was considered for the location. “In 1902, a Robert E. Lee statue was proposed for the site — which I would have been fine with,” he remarked.
‘A lot of people wouldn’t have liked it, would have been okay with me. It would have been okay with a lot of the people in this room, but they didn’t do that.’ Prior to Trump’s announcement, a reporter noticed the arch design on the resolute desk as they were being pushed out of the Oval Office. The reporter asks the president the purpose of the 3D model and he responded, ‘It’s an arch…It’s going to be built.’ When the reporter asks for whom, Trump replied, ‘For me!’
Since reentering the White House nine months ago, Trump has personally overseen several designer changes to the White House, including in the Rose Garden and Oval Office . Trump did not specify the exact cost of the new design project or who would be funding the operation. ‘It’s so relaxing for me, real estate is relaxing,’ Trump told donors in the East Room.
‘For a lot of people, real estate is a very trying business. I’ve always liked it. I’ve always done well with it.’ The commander-in-chief cited presidents who have introduced massive designer projects during their White House terms: ‘James Monroe who added the South Portico to Andrew Jackson who added the North Portico to Theodore Roosevelt, who added the West Wing… And Harry Truman, who added the Truman Balcony.’
The donors at Monday’s gathering were executives and representatives of multi-billion dollar corporations, including Alphabet’s Google, Meta, Amazon, Lockheed Martin, and Palantir. Trump promised his ballroom donors that the final product would be completed with ‘exquisite’ taste and could be used to host future presidential inaugurations.
‘I consider myself an important designer because they come in with things that they may be good designers, but boy, the things they can recommend are horrible,’ Trump joked.
