By Dan Diamond
The leader of the Vietnam Veterans of America (click here) says he was misled before the group endorsed President Donald Trump’s planned triumphal arch and criticized three Vietnam War veterans who have sued to stop it.
Tom Burke, the president of the veterans group, told members on Thursday that he was given “inaccurate information” and that a pro-arch legal brief filed by his and several other veterans groups “went further than I anticipated or intended,” according to an email shared with The Washington Post.
The brief told a federal judge that Trump’s project should be built and said that veterans who have sued to stop it did not speak for the larger community of veterans. The White House encouraged the group to sign the brief, which was joined by several other veterans groups, according to three people familiar with their plans, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss it publicly....
Trump cannot simply build an arch. It took 11 years to pass legislation and appropriate funding to build the WWII memorial. Trump is simply pouring money into the economy while making demands for unrealistic timelines.
It is an enormous monument. There is no way an arch should be rushed. We have already seen disastrous results from Trump's timelines with the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.
In 1993, Congress passed legislation authorizing (click here) the construction of the National World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C., or its immediate surroundings. President Clinton signed this legislation into law on May 25, 1993. The responsibility for designing and constructing the Memorial was entrusted to the American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC), an independent federal agency established by law in 1923. Over the subsequent years, extensive planning and coordination took place to create a fitting tribute to the millions of Americans who served during World War II and to commemorate the nation's collective contribution to the war effort. Finally, on May 29, 2004, the Memorial was formally dedicated, serving as a poignant reminder of the bravery, sacrifice, and resilience of those who served in the American armed services during World War II and honoring the entire nation's commitment to the cause. The following chronology highlights key events in the history of the project....
