Trump is desecrating the Lincoln Memorial | Ted Widmer

The monument excites reverence for the Declaration of Independence. Of course it is threatening to a president who doesn't share its egalitarian vision

The Lincoln Memorial has always been special. Its siting is perfect, facing the Capitol, across the length of the Mall, as if speaking truth to power. The symmetry of its proportions adds to its moral grandeur. It feels balanced and and open to all, like Lincoln's vision of democracy.

That was consciously on the mind of the architect, Henry Bacon. It is not a towering monolith; instead, it invites the visitor in. There are some steps to climb, but not too many; 87 in all, chosen specifically because of the four score and seven" in the Gettysburg Address, the number separating the year of Lincoln's speech (1863) from 1776, the year of the Declaration of Independence.

Ted Widmer is the author of Lincoln on the Verge: Thirteen Days to Washington, and a new book, to be published June 23, The Living Declaration: A Biography of America's Founding Text