A group of Vietnam War veterans and an architectural historian are asking a federal court to block excavation for a proposed 250-foot triumphal arch in Washington, D.C.
Veterans Michael Lemmon, Shaun Byrnes, and Jon Gundersen, joined by architectural historian Calder Loth, filed their emergency request for a temporary restraining order in federal court.
The filing came shortly after Interior Secretary Doug Burgum announced that excavation on the arch project would begin within the next two weeks.
The group has been engaged in a months-long legal battle with the Trump administration over the planned monument, which has drawn significant controversy.
Their core argument is that the administration is unlawfully proceeding with the arch without receiving required congressional approval for the project.
“Preserving Congress’s role in authorizing the design and siting of commemorative works and other structures on federal land in our national capital will ensure democratic accountability,” their lawyers wrote Friday.
The four plaintiffs initially challenged the project in a February lawsuit seeking to halt construction efforts on the proposed structure.
President Trump has described the planned arch as the largest in the world, a claim that has added to the monument’s political and cultural profile.
The veterans argue that bypassing Congress on a project of this scale sets a troubling precedent for how commemorative works are approved on federal land in the nation’s capital.
Legal experts have noted that the question of congressional authorization for large-scale federal monuments is a significant and unresolved issue at the center of this dispute.
The temporary restraining order request signals that the plaintiffs believe groundbreaking is imminent and that waiting for a full hearing could allow construction to advance beyond any practical point of reversal.
The case puts federal monument-building authority and executive power under fresh scrutiny, with the court now facing pressure to act quickly before excavation machinery moves onto the site.
