A Vietnam War veteran suing to block Donald Trump’s proposed triumphal arch in Washington, D.C., tore into the president over his claims the project would commemorate the nation’s founding and military history.
Jon Gunderson, 81, slammed the planned monument in an interview with MS NOW’s Katy Tur on Tuesday, calling it “a monument to the ego of one man” rather than a tribute to veterans.
Trump, 79, unveiled plans last year for a 250-foot gilded triumphal arch near the Lincoln Memorial as part of celebrations marking America’s 250th anniversary. In a Truth Social post last month, the president said his administration had “officially filed the presentation and plans to the highly respected Commission of Fine Arts for what will be the GREATEST and MOST BEAUTIFUL Triumphal Arch, anywhere in the World.”
Gunderson is among a group of Vietnam War veterans suing to stop construction of the project. They argue it was never authorized by Congress and that it would obstruct views of Arlington National Cemetery, where more than 400,000 American service members are buried.
“This is not a monument to veterans. This is a monument to the ego of one man,” Gunderson said during an appearance on Katy Tur Reports.
“And we know from Arlington National Cemetery, which was built after the Civil War to unify the nation, you had this sweeping view of Washington, the Lincoln Memorial, and the Washington Monument,” he said.
“This arch, which is bigger than the Statue of Liberty, bigger than the Lincoln Memorial, bigger than the Arc de Triomphe, would take away that view,” Gunderson added.
“It’s disrespectful for veterans. It’s not the way to honor veterans.”
The veteran also took aim at Trump after Tur noted the president’s insistence that the arch would honor veterans.
“Well, it’s a little ironic that somebody who avoided service with daddy’s rich help talks about honoring veterans,” Gunderson said.
Trump received five military deferments during the 1960s, four for academic reasons and one for bone spurs.
The veteran went on to criticize Trump over a report from The Washington Post that the president plans to cite a nearly century-old government report that authorized a similar project to skip approval from the current Congress for his arch.
Trump’s administration officials argue Congress pre-approved the 2026 arch when lawmakers signed off on a report by the Arlington Memorial Bridge Commission in 1925.
“If you honor veterans, you do it the right way. Now, I’m not an architect. I’m not a lawyer. I don’t know exactly the right way, but it’s certainly not finding some arcane 1924 law of a disbarred committee and justifying it. It’s got to go through the Congress,” Gunderson added.
The proposed arch is just one of many vanity projects Trump has kick-started since returning to the White House for a second term last year.
He has gilded the Oval Office with rococo mirrors, gold medallions, and eagle figurines, and erected oversized flagpoles on the grounds. The president has also sparked uproar for his costly plans to build a 90,000-square-foot ballroom, which is expected to be completed in late 2028, coinciding with the end of his term in office.
The Daily Beast has contacted the White House for comment.
