Below is a copy of the public testimony delivered by the Sierra Club in July 2026 at the National Capital Planning Commission Hearing on the proposal to build a Triumphal Arch on National Park Service lands adjacent to Arlington National Cemetery. The proposal, led by President Trump, has vocal opposition from veterans groups, environmental organizations, and historical societies.
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Testimony from Sherman Neal II, Marine Corps veteran and deputy director of the Sierra Club's Military Outdoors program
Honoring the legacy of the service members who gave their lives in defense of this country requires protecting the hallowed ground where they rest from desecration by President Trump and his vanity projects.
Every day I choose to honor the triumph and legacies of service members like Medgar Evers, LtCol Hector Santa Ana, and Major Meghan McClung whose will to serve represents the soul of what this nation could be. I am speaking to you on behalf of the millions of members of the Sierra Club as the director of their Military Outdoors Campaign. For (20) years we’ve supported and uplifted the veteran community by creating opportunities to heal in nature and uplifting veteran voices in conservation.
Today, I come to you as a Marine Corps veteran, son of a sailor, brother of an airman, and cousin, nephew, and friend of countless members of my extended family who have served in every branch of America’s military. I have earned the right, and have the obligation to speak for the people currently interred in Arlington – people who gave their lives to defend an imperfect nation with the expectation that people like you will protect their legacies, our land, and the integrity of our republic today by rejecting this monument.
I was 26 years old and just months away from my first deployment when I first gave serious thought to where I would want to be buried if I died at war. Every material possession that I owned could fit in my Jeep Wrangler, materials didn’t stress me out. Contemplating death itself didn’t stress me out. Nothing made me stop and think more than the question of whether I would earn the right to be buried in America’s most hallowed ground, Arlington National Cemetery, by displaying valor in combat.
In 2014, I drove alone to Arlington from Marine Corps Base Quantico to better understand what it meant to make the ultimate sacrifice. I departed from Manion Hall, a barracks named after First Lieutenant Travis Manion, a young man who was killed in battle in 2007. I knew his grave would be located in section 60, where the people close to my age, in a conflict that I would join, were laid to rest – over 7,000 of them there. I certainly didn’t want to die, but I trusted that my country would treat my final resting place with the solemn honor and respect that the servicemembers buried in Arlington have earned. I thought about these things in the spring of 2015 where I would support the establishment of “Camp Manion” where Marines led the effort to defeat ISIS in western Iraq.
Since then, I've seen families hosting picnics at the gravesites of their loved ones. I’ve seen soldiers wipe away their tears. I’ve felt the heaviness of the moment watching the guards post at the tomb of the unknown soldier. I know that ensuring that none of these lives were expended in vain requires defending democratic practices at home today and increasing support to the veterans among us.
I am testifying today on behalf the the Sierra Club program to protect our public lands from further desecration, ensure adherence to the law regardless of pressures from the executive, and most importantly refuse to allow any monument to a monarch who hasn’t served to cast a shadow on those who gave their lives for this country.
When I drove to Arlington before during my time at The Basic School, I believed that if the worst happened, my country would protect that sacred landscape with the dignity it deserved. This is an important time to remember the steps this administration has already taken to diminish the legacies of heroes at Arlington. This is a time to honor the 400,000 buried on those grounds by protecting their legacies. This is a time to demand those who honor commitments to living veterans by committing resources to wellness such as the Veterans Outdoor Rehabilitation Act ($10m) as opposed to Trump’s vanity projects at a cost of $102m.
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Testimony from Jackie Ostfeld, director of the Sierra Club's Outdoors for All Campaign
When President Trump first unveiled a model of the proposed triumphal arch, a reporter asked him a simple question: “Who is it for?” His answer was just as simple: “Me” he said.
That answer should tell us everything we need to know. Our public lands are not there to serve the vanity of any president. They belong to every American, and they should be managed with future generations in mind.
As the Director for the Sierra Club’s Outdoors for All Campaign, I spend every day working to expand access to our public lands while protecting the places that make those experiences possible.
Across the country, America’s national parks are facing a crisis. The Trump administration has cut National Park Service staff through widespread reductions in force even as parks continue to welcome millions of visitors every year. Visitors are seeing the consequences as fewer people are left to care for the places they came to experience.
Now, instead of directing resources toward those parks, the administration is taking money that visitors paid through National Park entrance fees and redirecting it to the president’s personal vanity projects in Washington. Trump’s proposed arch is simply the latest example of those misplaced priorities.
Americans pay those entrance fees because they expect that money will be used to care for the parks they visit. They expect it will preserve historic places, improve visitor experience, and protect these landscapes for future generations. That is not what is happening.
This proposal would permanently alter National Park Service land that frames the entrance to Arlington National Cemetery. At 250 feet, the proposed structure would be twice as tall as the Lincoln Memorial, and would block the line of sight that connects the Lincoln Memorial with the entrance to Arlington. This is the gateway to Arlington National Cemetery where more than 400,000 service members are laid to rest. It is a place that calls for thoughtful stewardship and deep respect.