The Associated Press

NEW: Arlington County sues to halt proposed arch in Memorial Circle

Published October 8, 2026 at 11:00PM

County Board member J.D. Spain Sr. speaks against the proposed arch in Memorial Circle (staff photo by Dan Egitto)

The Arlington County Board has filed a federal lawsuit seeking to stop construction of President Donald Trump’s planned 250-foot arch in Memorial Circle.

The suit, filed Thursday in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, makes the Board the first government body to take legal action against the monument. It criticizes the speed at which the project has moved without going through the full review process.

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Army identifies systemic failures behind midair collision and calls for safety fixes

By The Associated Press

Published October 8, 2026 at 2:40PM

A plane takes off from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport as Roberto Marquez of Dallas places flowers at a memorial of crosses he erected for the 67 victims of a midair collision between an Army helicopter and an American Airlines jet, Feb. 1, 2025, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

The U.S. Army found many systemic breakdowns that led to last year’s midair collision between an American Airlines jet and a Black Hawk helicopter over the Potomac River, and recommended numerous steps the military should take to prevent future tragedies.

The military has not publicly released its report on the deadliest plane crash on U.S. soil in over two decades, but eventually shared it late last week with many of the families of the 67 people who died.

News

Flight attendants’ union flags safety concerns over proposed Memorial Circle arch

By The Associated Press and ARLnow.com

Published October 8, 2026 at 1:45PM

Protest against the proposed arch in Memorial Circle on Oct. 1, 2026 (staff photo by Dan Egitto)

The union representing thousands of flight attendants said Wednesday it has safety concerns about President Donald Trump’s proposed triumphal arch that will be on final approach to Reagan National Airport.

Association of Flight Attendants-CWA President Sara Nelson said the 250-foot (76 meter) arch compounds multiple safety concerns that she said have gone unaddressed from a deadly January 2025 crash over the Potomac River that killed 67 people.

News

Arlington partners with Alexandria to intervene in Dominion Energy merger

By Dan Egitto and The Associated Press

Published September 28, 2026 at 1:45PM

Dominion Energy truck (staff photo)

Arlington County and the City of Alexandria are teaming up on proceedings related to a massive proposed merger involving Dominion Energy.

The county announced plans earlier this month to intervene in NextEra Energy’s bid to acquire Dominion for $67 billion, an energy merger that the county says would be the largest in U.S. history. Today (Monday), officials announced that Arlington’s legal efforts will be in partnership with its next-door neighbor.

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JUST IN: Trump says arch would become a ‘military complex’ able to host drones and snipers

By The Associated Press and ARLnow.com

Published September 20, 2026 at 9:00AM | Updated September 20, 2026 at 11:20AM

A rendering of the proposed triumphal arch in Memorial Circle (via NPS)

President Donald Trump said Sunday that the massive arch he wants to build between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington National Cemetery would become a “top grade military complex” able to host drones and snipers while storing ammunition.

It is one more example of how Trump is insisting that his initiatives to beautify the White House and the city are also serving a defensive purpose. Trump has been calling the new White House ballroom a “military complex” and arguing it is necessary for national security purposes.

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Va. attorney general says DHS may have violated state election law after whistleblower report

By The Associated Press

Published September 17, 2026 at 10:40PM

FILE - Democratic candidate for Virginia attorney general Jay Jones participates in the debate with Republican incumbent Jason Miyares in Richmond, Va., Oct. 16, 2025. (Mike Kropf/Richmond Times-Dispatch via AP, Pool, File)

Virginia’s attorney general said Thursday that the Department of Homeland Security may have violated several state laws after a whistleblower accused its employees of misrepresenting themselves on voter lookup tools to hunt for noncitizen voters.

In a letter obtained by The Associated Press, Attorney General Jay Jones demanded that DHS confirm in writing whether it had directed anyone to access Virginia voters’ information without first obtaining permission from those voters.

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Park Service quietly awards contracts to work on Trump’s revamp of East Potomac golf course

By The Associated Press

Published September 16, 2026 at 10:00PM

The East Potomac Park Golf Course and the Thomas Jefferson Memorial are seen from the Washington Monument, Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

The Trump administration has awarded contracts to begin work on President Donald Trump’s planned takeover of the East Potomac Golf Links in Washington, Democrats on the House Natural Resources Committee said Wednesday.

Rep. Jared Huffman of California, the panel’s top Democrat, revealed during a committee hearing that the National Park Service hired a civil engineering firm to begin work on the historic public golf course, without any public announcement or heads-up to Congress. A lawsuit challenging Trump’s plan to revamp the golf course argues that the administration’s redevelopment would violate the congressional act that created the park more than a century ago.

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Kennedy Center board reportedly votes to close over financial woes, Trump branding dispute

By The Associated Press

Published September 15, 2026 at 3:35PM

The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts as seen from the Washington Monument, Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

WASHINGTON (AP) — The board of the Kennedy Center voted Tuesday to close the facility amid financial issues and a dispute over putting President Donald Trump’s name on the iconic performing arts venue, according to people familiar with the matter.

Trump and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick participated in the board meeting, according to one of the people. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss a private meeting. Lutnick’s wife, Allison, is a member of the Trump-appointed board.

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Pentagon 9/11 memorial breaking ground on its first visitor center

By ARLnow.com and The Associated Press

Published September 12, 2026 at 9:00AM

Service members unfurl a flag on the 25th anniversary over the portion of the Pentagon's west side that was struck by an airliner hijacked by terrorists, on Friday, Sept. 11, 2026, in Arlington Va. (AP Photo/John McDonnell

A $100 million visitor center breaks ground today at the Pentagon’s 9/11 memorial, the last of the three attack sites to get one.

The ceremony begins at 11 a.m. at the National 9/11 Pentagon Memorial, a day after the 25th anniversary of the attack that killed 184 people at the Pentagon and aboard American Airlines Flight 77. U.S. Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.), who led the effort to secure $12 million in federal construction money for the project, is expected to attend.

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Del. Lopez ‘incredibly grateful’ as protections for Salvadoran immigrants hold fast

By Dan Egitto and The Associated Press

Published September 11, 2026 at 3:45PM

FILE - President Donald Trump greets El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele, left, at the Shield of the Americas Summit, March 7, 2026, at Trump National Doral Miami in Doral, Fla. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)

Silence from the Trump administration on protections for immigrants from El Salvador has at least one Northern Virginia lawmaker breathing a sigh of relief.

A deadline to decide whether over 170,000 immigrants from El Salvador can remain protected from deportation passed this week without any public announcement. The Department of Homeland Security issued a statement saying it would make an announcement “at an appropriate time” and that Temporary Protected Status for El Salvador would stay in effect until then.

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Arlington County remembers 25 years since 9/11 terrorist attacks

By Dan Egitto and The Associated Press

Published September 11, 2026 at 10:00AM | Updated September 11, 2026 at 3:43PM

An American flag drapes over the Pentagon in remembrance of those killed on 9/11 (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Today (Friday) marks 25 years since the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, that left nearly 3,000 dead and altered the face of Arlington and the entire country.

Across the nation, the milestone anniversary brings memorial rituals — wreath-laying, flag-flying, moments of silence, vigils and readings of victims’ names — and volunteer projects in tribute to a day that about half of U.S. adults remember as the most historic event of their lifetime, according to a new poll.

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Arlington housing nonprofit says the math doesn’t work for the poorest renters

By ARLnow.com and The Associated Press

Published September 8, 2026 at 10:00AM

Wholey Legacy Homes, an affordable housing project from True Ground Housing Partners at 1300 N. Pierce Street, at its December 2025 ribbon cutting (staff photo by Dan Egitto)

Arlington-based True Ground Housing Partners says it can’t build apartments for the region’s poorest renters without a level of subsidy that doesn’t exist.

The nonprofit developer laid out the math for the Associated Press: a unit for those earning 60% of the area’s median income — nearly $70,000 a year — brings in $1,715 per month in rent. But after $1,575 in mortgage and operating expenses, only $140 is left.