On a Tuesday in November, nine children and grandchildren of Robert F. Kennedy and Edward M. Kennedy asked a federal court to stand with those already challenging a planned 76-metre triumphal arch in Washington. Their claim is that the monument would lay a heavy hand upon the quiet ground where their kin rest beside their brother John, and upon the sightline that has linked the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington House for a century. It is one more chapter in a larger human story: the way a nation's sacred places are shaped, and who gets to speak for the dead.
Kennedy Family Joins Lawsuits Against Trump's Proposed DC Arch Near Gravesites
A permanent denigration of the gravesites
Mark
Why does the Kennedy family's involvement matter when other plaintiffs are already suing?
Mimi
Because of where the arch would stand. It's near the graves of John, Robert and Edward Kennedy and the Eternal Flame, so these plaintiffs have a personal stake in the exact spot.
Mark
What is the legal claim, specifically?
Mimi
That the National Park Service and the Interior Department authorised the arch without the congressional approval required. There's also the argument about the century-old sightline between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington House.
Luke
Those are the plaintiffs' arguments, though. Nothing here says a court has accepted them.
Mimi
Right. What's confirmed is the filing and the judge's 14-day bar on groundbreaking. The merits are untested.
Mark
And the family has to be admitted first?
Luke
Yes. They filed a motion to intervene. Whether Judge Chutkan grants it isn't reported yet.
Mark
What about Robert F Kennedy Jr?
Mimi
He serves in Trump's cabinet, is estranged from much of his family, and didn't join.
Luke
The piece doesn't say why he stayed out, so I'd not read motive into it.
Mark
And the election result?
Luke
The article says scrutiny may heighten. That's a possibility, not an outcome.
Le Pouls
- Nine members of the Kennedy family have pressed their way into existing federal lawsuits against a 250-foot arch that critics have already nicknamed the "Arc de Trump."
- The family argues the arch was approved without the congressional sign-off the law requires, and that it would sever a century-old view between Lincoln Memorial and Arlington House.
- A federal judge has frozen groundbreaking for 14 days, buying time while a crowded field of challengers, from veterans to three governments, gathers its arguments.
- Democrats' newly won control of Congress hints at closer scrutiny ahead, and the next move rests on whether the court admits the Kennedys to the case.
On a Tuesday in November, nine children and grandchildren of Robert F. Kennedy and Edward M. Kennedy asked a federal court to stand with those already challenging a planned 76-metre triumphal arch in Washington. Their claim is that the monument would lay a heavy hand upon the quiet ground where their kin rest beside their brother John, and upon the sightline that has linked the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington House for a century. It is one more chapter in a larger human story: the way a nation's sacred places are shaped, and who gets to speak for the dead.
On Tuesday, nine members of the Kennedy family went to federal court seeking to join the legal fight against President Donald Trump's planned 76-metre arch in Washington. They are the children and grandchildren of Robert F. Kennedy and Edward M. Kennedy, and they say the structure would disturb the ground where their relatives are buried at Arlington National Cemetery, close by the grave of their uncle, President John F. Kennedy, and the Eternal Flame that honors him.
The family filed its motion alongside a complaint in two lawsuits already pending. Their lawyers, Norm Eisen and the Democracy Defenders Fund, contend that the National Park Service and the Interior Department approved the granite structure without the congressional approval required. They also argue that the arch would erase a deliberately designed line of sight across Memorial Bridge, between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington House. In their words, building it would be a "permanent denigration" of the gravesites, which millions visit every year.
They are joining a crowded field that includes Vietnam veterans, a historian, and the governments of the District of Columbia, Virginia and Arlington County. Last week, Judge Tanya Chutkan halted groundbreaking for 14 days. Rory and Maxwell Kennedy spoke for the family, describing the case as a defense of sacred spaces that belong to the American people.
Not every Kennedy stands with them. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., now Health and Human Services Secretary under Trump, did not join. For now, the pause and the judge's decision on whether the family may enter the case are the next markers, as Democrats' new congressional power may bring closer scrutiny to this project and others reshaping the capital.
On Tuesday, nine members of the Kennedy family went to federal court with a request to join the legal fight against President Donald Trump's planned 76-metre (250ft) triumphal arch in Washington, DC. They are the children and grandchildren of two late senators, Robert F Kennedy and Edward M Kennedy, and their argument is that the structure would damage the ground where their relatives are buried.
The arch would stand near the graves of the two senators, who lie alongside their brother, former President John F Kennedy, at Arlington National Cemetery. It would also be near the Eternal Flame that commemorates John F Kennedy. The plaintiffs say the structure would fundamentally alter the experience of visiting the gravesites, which draw millions of visitors each year.
The family filed a motion to intervene, along with a complaint, in two federal lawsuits already pending against the project. Their lawyers are Norm Eisen, a veteteran Washington attorney, and Democracy Defenders Fund, a centre-left legal advocacy group. The filing contends that the National Park Service and the Department of the Interior authorised the granite structure, which is ornamented with gold and has been nicknamed the "Arc de Trump" by critics, without the congressional approval that is required.
The plaintiffs raise a second objection about geography. They say the arch would destroy a century-old line of sight, deliberately designed, between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington House, the building in the cemetery, across the Memorial Bridge. Building it, the family's lawyers wrote, would be a "permanent denigration" of the gravesites. The relatives, they said, would never again be able to appreciate both sites as they always have, and as the Kennedy family always intended.
The Kennedys are joining a crowded field. Other challengers include Vietnam War veterans, a historian, and the governments of the District of Columbia, Virginia and Arlington County. Last week, District Judge Tanya Chutkan barred the Trump administration from breaking ground on the arch for another 14 days, following the string of lawsuits.
Speaking for the family, Rory and Maxwell Kennedy, children of Robert F Kennedy, said the action is about protecting sacred spaces that belong to the American people. They noted that several members of their family are among the more than 400,000 veterans and family members buried or honoured at the cemetery.
Not every Kennedy is part of the case. Robert F Kennedy Jr, the Health and Human Services Secretary, is a Trump appointee and is estranged from much of his family. He did not join the litigation.
The arch is one piece of the president's broader push to remake much of Washington, which also includes a renovation of a historic golf course and threats to demolish the Kennedy Center. Democrats took control of Congress in last week's midterm elections, and that shift may bring heightened scrutiny of these projects. For now, the immediate marker is the 14-day pause on groundbreaking, and whether the judge allows the Kennedy family into the cases.
Citations marquantes
The action is about protecting sacred spaces that belong to the American people.— Rory and Maxwell Kennedy, on behalf of the family
The arch would be a permanent denigration of the gravesites.— Lawyers for the Kennedy relatives
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Politics & Governance