Washington isn’t exactly flush with tax dollars these days. That’s one reason U.S. Sen. Kit Bond of Missouri said Wednesday he’s against expanding a small World War I Memorial on the National Mall.

Bond and Kansas Citians have another excellent argument against a new facility:

We already have the beautifully restored Liberty Memorial, which does a marvelous job of commemorating the war and honoring those who fought in it.

The highlight is the National World War I Museum, which opened in 2006, with local taxpayers footing most of the cost. And Congress has already passed a bill stating that it is the World War I museum for the nation.

But U.S. Rep. Ted Poe, a Texas Republican, is sponsoring legislation to fix up and enlarge the District of Columbia World War I Memorial in the nation’s capital.

Fortunately, some Missouri officials in Washington are challenging that idea.

In the 1990s Emanuel Cleaver, then the Kansas City mayor, and other civic leaders talked to federal officials when the city was trying to fix a crumbling Liberty Memorial. They got cold shoulders from most politicians.

Bond, a Missouri Republican, recalls having to fight hard just to eventually get a few million dollars in federal funding for restoring the memorial.

Honoring World War I veterans is commendable. But there’s little reason to spend more tax dollars on another memorial, especially when the nation already has Liberty Memorial.

Meanwhile, local officials are trying to achieve a worthwhile goal also connected with World War I.

Cleaver, now in the U.S. House, and Bond have introduced companion bills to establish the World War I Centennial Commission “to ensure a suitable observance” starting in 2014, the 100th anniversary of the war’s beginning.

Liberty Memorial ought to be the “focal point” of the activities, Bond said.

Indeed it should. That would enable many more people to see the amazing job the museum does in telling the story of one of history’s most catastrophic wars.

Congress ought to move ahead with ensuring that Liberty Memorial plays a prime role in the war’s centennial.