Kennedy Family Members Join Lawsuit to Block Trump's Arch Near Arlington Cemetery

On Tuesday, nine members of the Kennedy family filed court papers asking to join the lawsuit that is trying to stop President Trump from building a large triumphal arch beside Arlington National Cemetery. The group includes several children and grandchildren of Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy and Sen. Ted Kennedy. Both men are buried at Arlington, as is their brother, President John F. Kennedy.

Their argument is about sightlines. The filing says the arch would block the views from the Kennedy gravesites and from the Eternal Flame that marks President Kennedy's grave. The family wrote that the structure would "permanently cast a shadow over the graves of servicemen and women who made the ultimate sacrifice for this country, including the Kennedy Gravesites."

The family members are seeking to intervene as plaintiffs in litigation already under way against the Trump administration. The existing plaintiffs include the city of Washington, D.C., and the Commonwealth of Virginia, along with several Vietnam War veterans. Among the Kennedys asking to join are Kerry Kennedy and Joe Kennedy III, the niece and grandnephew of the Kennedy Center's namesake.

In a statement, Rory Kennedy and Maxwell Kennedy said Americans from every corner of the country come to Arlington to honor those who served and sacrificed. A towering arch casting shadows over the graves of their father, mother and uncles, and over so many others who served, they said, would also cast a shadow over democratic principles. They argued it would undermine safeguards that elected representatives set up to protect the ground for generations. The Justice Department had no comment on the filing when CBS News asked.

The proposed arch is planned for a traffic circle across the Potomac River from the Lincoln Memorial. It is one of several construction projects in and around the capital that Mr. Trump has personally pushed. His administration says the arch would commemorate 250 years of American independence, and it sought to break ground as early as this month.

The project has met strong resistance from local officials, congressional Democrats, and some veterans and others with a stake in Arlington. Opponents say the administration did not follow the proper legal processes, and that the arch would block sightlines between the cemetery and the Lincoln Memorial. The National Capital Planning Commission, which is stacked with Trump allies, voted last week to approve the plans.

U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan has blocked the government from starting any construction-related activity for 14 days, and the report says she indicated the plan is likely illegal. The plaintiffs have asked the court for a longer-term injunction. The government maintains that the arch does not violate the law and that the plaintiffs lack standing to sue. White House spokesman Davis Ingle said last week that the administration is confident it will be fully vindicated and looks forward to completing what he called a magnificent arch, a tribute to 250 years of American greatness.

This is not the first time Kennedy relatives have criticized Mr. Trump's changes to the capital's landscape. Several have spoken out against his attempts to add his name to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Kerry Kennedy's brother, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has said he was not involved in the proposed renaming and did not recommend against it. Asked about the pushback from relatives, he said: "Of course, I understand it, but I have bigger fish to fry."

What happens next rests with the court. Once the 14-day pause ends, a ruling on the longer-term injunction will help decide whether the arch can break ground.