Judge blocks construction on Trump’s D.C.-area arch after commission’s approval

NBC News · Gary Grumbach, Julia Eisen, Megan Brand, Maggie McCabe, Dareh Gregorian · 2026-11-05 18:56 UTC

The Trump administration has said it expects to begin construction immediately, but a judge is considering a plan to temporarily halt the project.

A federal judge late Thursday temporarily blocked construction on President Donald Trump’s “Triumphal Arch” shortly after a planning commission led by Trump appointees approved it.

U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan granted a temporary restraining order blocking the administration from “initiating, making, or otherwise effectuating any construction, excavation” or other steps in the arch project for 14 days.

Chutkan’s order came within an hour of the National Capital Planning Commission’s approval of the massive and controversial arch project, which would sit in Memorial Circle between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington National Cemetery.

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