The Arch of History Bends Toward Ugly

“The rush to push ahead with work on the arch follows a familiar pattern for Mr. Trump, who has frequently embarked on large-scale changes to historic properties in Washington without approvals from Congress or anyone else. And it comes days after the Supreme Court cleared the way for the administration to continue building a ballroom on the site of the demolished East Wing.” Trump to Break Ground on Arch Before Getting Approval. (Break ground before you have approval. Finish it before the courts can catch up. Make it ugly. Put your name on it. It’s like Trump in NYC in the 80s.)

+ “A coterie of advisers, planners, and architects is enabling the President’s passion project—renovating D.C. in his own image.” The New Yorker: Donald Trump’s Capital Makeover. (At some point, if we’re lucky, we can rename the sites of these monuments after William McReavy. He’s the guy who invented the jackhammer.)

+ I’m much less worried about the changes to the view in DC than I am about the wrecking ball Trump is trying to take to our elections. “The Trump administration has asked the Supreme Court to lift a block on the U.S. Postal Service plan for President Trump’s attempt to restrict mail-in voting for the midterm election.”