Judge pauses Trump arch project

A federal judge issued a temporary order late Friday to stop construction on President Trump's proposed arch in Washington, D.C.

District Court Judge Tanya Chutkan signed the order just before midnight. It halts work for 14 days at the request of the District of Columbia and the Commonwealth of Virginia.

The arch is planned for Memorial Circle. This location is a traffic island on the bridge connecting the Lincoln Memorial to Arlington National Cemetery.

Chutkan wrote a 33-page opinion scrutinizing the administration's justifications for the project. She focused on claims regarding national security. She agreed that local governments are likely to be harmed by construction.

The legal move followed a contentious meeting the previous evening. The National Capital Planning Commission voted to approve the arch. The panel is filled with allies of President Trump.

The approval came despite opposition from dozens of attendees. After nearly nine hours, the panel gave the go-ahead. This decision would have allowed excavation to begin immediately.

Several Democratic lawmakers are discussing ways to block the arch. Jared Huffman, a Democrat from California, warned commissioners at the meeting. He said anyone advancing projects not authorized by Congress risks legal repercussions.

Huffman is likely to become head of the House Natural Resources Committee.

The Labor Department is set to release the latest jobs report today. Analysts expect the data to show that employers added about 60,000 jobs last month.

NPR's Scott Horsley noted that while this is not robust growth, it should keep the unemployment rate low. A stable job market allows the Federal Reserve to focus on fighting high inflation.

Harmeet Dhillon has left her position as head of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division. She served for 18 months. Dhillon is the first senior official to depart since Democrats gained control of Congress in the midterms.

Dhillon called the role the honor of a lifetime. During her tenure, she transformed the unit and saw a loss of career staff. She aggressively pursued the administration's agenda.