President Trump plans to build an "Arc de trump"

Question

I have recently been hearing news about President Trump's plan to build an Arc de Trump similar to the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. I have seen some videos and photos of the design and as well as heard news about the recent demolition project in the White House for Trump's ballroom, so the claims of a new project felt fitting and truthful. After looking through multiple articles, such as USA Today and Fox News I find that the claim seems very true, and the arc will be a celebration of the United States 250th anniversary. However, according to CBS the project is not completely confirmed and there is no certainty for when it would begin, especially amidst Trump's recent ballroom construction at the white house. There are still many questions about the arc, but MSNBC explains that Trump stated it would be in his honor and that the funding is not yet determined. As of now the project seems to be more of a beginning idea rather than a concrete plan.

Answer 1

A monument reminiscent of France’s “Arc de Triomphe” (nicknamed “Arc De Trump”) has indeed been announced by President Trump, but there is no evidence to suggest that he will actually receive the funding or permission to build it. With that said, Trump recently tore down the East Wing of the White House without permission from the National Capital Planning Commission and is paying for its ballroom replacement via donations from unnamed wealthy donors. So, him moving ahead with the “Arc De Trump” without federal funding or permission from the NCPC is within the realm of possibility.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=hg86sbJ3XjY

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy7e8lv176go

https://www.ncpc.gov/docs/actions/2017September/Final_NEPA_Regulations_7744_Sept2017.pdf

Answer 2

According to what I've found this claim is true- Trump is planning to build a monument reminiscent of the arc de triomphe to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the country's founding. The location chosen for this structure is across the bridge from the Lincoln Memorial to serve as a ceremonial entrance to the capitol city. According to BBC, the project will still require congressional approval and will have to be organized by the National Capital Planning Commission in order to actually be completed. This reality means that it will likely be nowhere near construction by the time the 250th anniversary comes around. Critics see this as an extended effort to establish his permanence in office, these dramatic renovations to the White House don't necessarily reflect a willingness to hand over power once his term is complete. Why add a massive ballroom, and an arch paid for by his supporters, if he's not planning on sticking around long term? The Guardian's article discussing this brought to light that the arc de triomphe was built in commemoration of emperor Napoleon's birthday. The fact that an arch will be built using Trump's supporters funds that is reminiscent of a famously tyrannical leader's monument is understandably concerning because of the shared symbolism. Presidents are typically memorialized for their great deeds long after they leave office, the connotation of a president using their influence to establish a permanent monument during their term could be seen as a slightly unorthodox. 

Answer 3

Yes, unfortunately this plan is true. Whether it will come to fruition or not is the true story. I found a few different news media. This isn’t surprising because this claim deals with a political figure, Donald Trump. The first news article I found was written by Kathryn Watson with CBS News. This first article explained how the public learned about this idea, and gave us a picture of the model. Trump revealed the model at a White House dinner. CBS did question where the funding is coming from, and mentioned the “slashing of federal jobs during the government shutdown”. The second article that I found was further explaining the why of this project, but went further in depth about some of Trump’s future projects as president. This article was published by BBC, and had very little opinions about the building of the arc. Both of these news articles are similar, but some can have more opinions than others, like we saw in the CBS news article.

Sources:

CBS News Article

BBC News Article