特朗普政府周三晚间告知一名法官，总统备受争议的250英尺（约76米）高凯旋门建设最快可在两周后、即中期选举后几天内开工。
The Trump administration told a judge Wednesday evening that construction on the president’s controversial 250-foot triumphal arch could begin in just two weeks, days after the midterm elections.
司法部在周三提交的法庭文件中表示，国家首都规划委员会定于11月5日召开会议，届时可能批准凯旋门的最终方案——在获得内政部最终授权后，“施工最早可于2026年11月5日开始”。政府上周发布了该凯旋门的最终方案——这是唐纳德·特朗普总统在首都的宠儿建设项目之一。周三晚间的法庭文件是针对旨在叫停凯旋门建设的诉讼之一提交的。
The Justice Department said in Wednesday’s court filing that the National Capital Planning Commission is set to meet on November 5 and could sign off on final plans for the arch that day — and with final authorization from the Department of the Interior — “construction could commence as early as November 5, 2026.”The administration last week released final plans for the arch — one of President Donald Trump’s pet construction projects in the nation’s capital. Wednesday night’s court filing comes in one of the lawsuits seeking to stop the arch’s construction.
值得注意的是，上周发布的方案排除了特朗普用以证明该备受批评项目合理性的军事综合体关键特征，包括无人机和狙击手。在方案中，凯旋门的轮廓似乎并不体现国家安全目的。相反，方案将该项目描述为通往国家首都的“礼仪门户”。
Notably, the plans released last week excluded key features of a military complex including drones and snipers that Trump has used as justification for the much-criticized project. In the plans, the contours of the arch do not appear to reflect a national security purpose. Instead, they describe the project as a “ceremonial gateway” to the nation’s capital.
特朗普于9月宣布，该凯旋门将储存大量无人机，并作为军事狙击手岗位，配备大量弹药。尽管上周提交的方案不包含特朗普描述的军事组件，但该建筑仍可能具备这些功能。
Trump announced in September that the arch would store large numbers of drones and function as a post for military snipers, with a large cache of ammunition. While the plans submitted last week don’t include the military components Trump described, the structure still might feature them.
这座巨大的凯旋门将矗立在阿灵顿国家公墓正对面，那里安葬着近43万名军人、退伍军人及其家属。起诉叫停建设的退伍军人认为，这座高耸的建筑将破坏公墓葬礼的庄严性，而文物保护主义者则认为，它将破坏包括林肯纪念堂、阿灵顿府和罗伯特·李纪念堂在内的国家地标列阵的视线。
The massive arch would sit directly across from Arlington National Cemetery where nearly 430,000 service members, veterans and their family members are buried. Veterans suing to stop its construction argue the towering structure would break the solemnity of funerals at the cemetery, while preservationists argue it would disrupt the sightline of the row of national landmarks that includes the Lincoln Memorial, Arlington House and the Robert E. Lee Memorial.
美国内政部的一位发言人周末对 CNN 表示，这座拱门的建设将“提升阿灵顿国家公墓的参观体验，让退伍军人、阵亡将士的家属以及所有美国人都能从中受益”。这座拟建的拱门是特朗普推行的多个项目之一，其目的是按照自己的意愿重塑美国首都的形象；这一举措引发了文物保护人士等群体的强烈反对。特朗普曾以“国家安全需要”为由，为在白宫东翼原址建造新的宴会厅辩护。
An Interior Department spokesperson told CNN over the weekend that the structure will “enhance the visitor experience at Arlington National Cemetery for veterans, the families of the fallen, and all Americans alike.”The proposed arch is among several projects Trump is pursuing in an effort to remake the nation’s capital to his own personal liking, prompting legal battles from preservationists and others. The idea of the arch being needed for national security purposes mirrors an argument Trump has made for building a White House ballroom where the East Wing once stood.