WASHINGTON, D.C.: Claiming that history is on his side, President Donald Trump says he wants to build a towering arch near the Lincoln Memorial and argues that the nation's capital first demanded such a monument two centuries ago.

The president said he wants the new structure to resemble the Arc de Triomphe at the end of the Champs-Élysées in Paris, which was built to honor those who fought for France during the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars.

"It was interrupted by a thing called the Civil War, and so it never got built. Then, they almost built something in 1902, but it never happened," Trump said aboard Air Force One as he flew to Florida last weekend.

However, Trump's historical understanding of the subject is off the mark. The eagles he referred to were actually part of a bridge connecting Virginia and Washington, built decades after the Civil War. The closest Washington came to an arch was a wooden-and-plaster structure built in 1919 to mark the end of World War I — and even that was always meant to be temporary.

Trump said that for 200 years, people had wanted to build an arch in Washington, D.C., and noted that 57 cities around the world already have one. He said Washington is the only major city without an arch.

He used a similar argument to defend the construction of a US$400 million ballroom at the White House, saying officials had long wanted an ample event space. However, there is little evidence that the public had strongly demanded a ballroom. Trump still used the same reasoning to support the arch idea and said he believed it would be the most beautiful in the world.

The proposed arch would be near the Arlington Memorial Bridge over the Potomac River. Trump first showed the idea at a dinner for major donors in October. He did not say how much it would cost, who would pay, or whether he would seek approval from the planning authorities. He displayed three models of different sizes, each topped with a Statue of Liberty figure.

He said he preferred the largest design, and reports suggested he was considering an arch about 250 feet tall. When asked later, he did not confirm the height but said he wanted it to be the biggest one. He added that a committee would review the plan and that it would be a large project.

When reporters asked about four eagle statues associated with the design, the White House shared only a photo of the eagle sculptures at the corners of the Arlington Memorial Bridge, without further explanation.

A White House spokesperson supported Trump's idea, saying Americans had wanted an arch in the capital for nearly 200 years and that Trump's vision would leave a lasting mark on the country.

However, historians note that the timeline is not exact. The Arlington Memorial Bridge was first proposed in 1886, but was not approved by Congress until 1925. According to the National Park Service, the bridge was designed after the Civil War to symbolize the reunion of the North and South.

It originally connected the Lincoln Memorial to the former home of Confederate General Robert E. Lee, which is now Arlington National Cemetery. At the time it was built, there was even debate over which direction the eagle statues on the bridge should face — toward the city or toward visitors.