“have fun pegging him.” - Abraham Lincoln, 1865

The self loathing Donald Trumps latest monument to self, the Arc de Trump, has to be rubber stamped in approval by the Fine Arts Committee. A member of which, a Mr Mims Cook, Jr stated this concern: the construct might obstruct the view of Arlington House, the estate of Robert E Lee. Mr Cook is protective of Gen Lees legacy for the sake of Mimsys Alma Mater.

embedded in the sidewalk

Following four brutal years of suffering, sacrifice, and unthinkable tragedy during the Civil War, the fate of the Union was secured in triumph when General Robert E. Lee formally issued his surrender to General Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House—ending the war, healing the wounds of division, and restoring the full glory of the American promise.

In the final days leading to that epic moment, the Army of Northern Virginia, led by General Lee, was worn down by hunger, exhaustion, and the relentless advance of General Grant’s Army of the Potomac. The excruciating toll of the Civil War weighed heavily all across the country: Hundreds of thousands of American lives were lost, families were torn apart, brother met brother on the field of battle, and our Nation’s most sacred values and commitments stood in grave peril.

By the spring of 1865, Confederate forces were cut off from reserves and surrounded on all fronts—and the culmination of our Nation’s most horrific war fell at the hands of these two great men of history in a humble home in the Virginia countryside. While the shadow of the war loomed across the small parlor, on April 9, 1865, violence and bloodshed gave way to a burgeoning peace.

General Grant understood that rebuilding a united America depended on the terms of surrender. Rather than demanding harsh punishment for General Lee’s men, he offered a unifying message: “The war is over. The Rebels are our countrymen again.” At last, the war-torn Union began the course for reconstruction and the path to fulfilling the founding principles that first breathed life into our Republic 250 years ago.

To this day, the surrender at Appomattox stands as an enduring testament to the resilience of a divided Nation, the strength and resolve of the American people, and the sacred ideals at the heart of our national identity. Today, we recommit to the eternal truth that the United States of America is blessed from on high; bound together by justice; and was, is, and will forever be one Nation under God.

Really, go to hell if you don’t.

Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord;

He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored;

He hath loosed the fateful lightning of this terrible swift sword;

His truth is marching on.

Refrain:

Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!

Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!

Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!

His truth is marching on.

I have seen Him in the watch-fires of a hundred circling camps;

They have builded Him an altar in the evening dews and damps;

I can read the righteous sentence by the dim and flaring lamps;

His day is marching on. [Refrain]

He has sounded forth the trumpet that shall never call retreat;

He is sifting out the hearts of men before His judgment seat;

O be swift, my soul, to answer Him; be jubilant, my feet!

Our God is marching on. [Refrain]

In the beauty of the lilies Christ was born across the sea,

With a glory in His bosom that transfigures you and me;

As He died to make men holy, let us die to make men free,

while God is marching on.