Trump unveils Paris-style arch on Memorial Circle in DC

President Donald Trump on Wednesday unveiled plans for a Paris-style triumphal arch to be built in Washington, DC, as part of commemorations for the 250th anniversary of American independence. Speaking to donors at a White House dinner, Trump displayed renderings and three scale models of the structure, which he said would sit on the Washington end of Memorial Bridge across the Potomac River from the Lincoln Memorial.

The proposed monument, which has been compared visually to Paris’s Arc de Triomphe and nicknamed by some observers as the "Arc de Trump," would be positioned in the center of the Memorial Circle roundabout facing the White House, according to the renderings shown. The designs include a statue of Lady Liberty on top and three size options; Trump held up the models and said he preferred the largest. When a reporter in the Oval Office later asked whom the arch would honor, Trump replied, "Me," and added, "It's going to be beautiful."

Details on cost, timeline and formal approvals remain unclear. Trump told donors that a separate privately funded White House ballroom project is fully financed and suggested that any leftover funds from that effort could be applied to...