America's Gulf Is Just the Start
The initial disputes regarding global landmarks pale in comparison to the battles surrounding the renaming of public projects to honor President Donald Trump himself.
TroibNews 
One of President Donald Trump’s early initiatives is already showing results: Google Maps announced on Monday that it would rename the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America and Denali to Mount McKinley for users in the United States.
This new naming policy is a part of an ongoing Trump initiative to modify the names of global landmarks to align with his political and cultural views. In his second term, he has achieved some success; the Associated Press reported on the honor given to the name change for Denali, North America’s tallest mountain, although the Gulf of Mexico will not be affected. He has also expressed his intention to revert the name of Fort Liberty back to Fort Bragg, a name it held from 1918 until 2022, which Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth referenced while discussing the North Carolina base on Monday.
However, these early initiatives are just a prelude to the semantic battles expected in the coming years. The nation is bracing for an intense fight state by state over the renaming of landmarks and public utilities in honor of the president.
The movement has already begun.
Some streets and highways named after Trump remain from his first term. In 2021, Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt signed legislation to name a section of highway after him. The following year, a rural county in Nevada renamed a justice complex—which includes sheriff’s offices, courtrooms, and a jail—in Trump's honor. In 2023, Hialeah, Florida, which has shifted politically to the right, voted unanimously to rename a street after Trump.
Now, as Trump embarks on his second term, efforts are accelerating. Lawmakers from states including Arizona, Missouri, Kentucky, and Wyoming are putting forth measures to designate specific roadways as the “Donald J. Trump Highway.” Meanwhile, local officials in Garfield County, Utah, recently rejected a proposal to rename a scenic byway after Trump.
Congressional attempts to honor Trump are ambitious, as evidenced by the enthusiastic reception he receives during events like the State of the Union address. In line with this, Rep. Greg Steube introduced a measure last year to designate the exclusive economic zone of the United States as the “Donald John Trump Exclusive Economic Zone of the United States.” This zone encompasses nearly all U.S. coastlines—both east and west.
Last week, Rep. Addison McDowell proposed a bill to rename Washington’s Dulles International Airport as Donald J. Trump International Airport after a similar effort last year failed to gain traction in the House.
Trump is known for attaching his name to a wide array of ventures, from apartment buildings and golf courses to a variety of products and events. However, the current efforts to honor him mainly stem from MAGA lawmakers eager to gain his favor by memorializing his first term and anticipating future achievements.
“WHEREAS, President Trump’s actions during his first term had a positive effect on the American people and the resilience of American government; and WHEREAS, President Trump was elected to be President of the United States on November 5, 2024, becoming only the second president in our nation’s history elected to two non-consecutive terms in office; and WHEREAS, for his accomplishments in the past and for all the things he will do for our country over the next four years,” a resolution in the Kentucky legislature states. “President Trump is worthy of tangible recognition by the Commonwealth of Kentucky.”
So far, partisan disputes regarding homage to Trump have been minimal, primarily occurring in red states. However, as efforts to honor the Trump name cross into blue states, they face pushback. Before various legal challenges against Trump halted momentum, a group of Democrats in Virginia opposed the renaming of Dulles airport by introducing a bill to rename a federal prison in Miami after him.
“I see no reason to wait. Donald Trump faces nearly 100 felony charges. He has been found liable of sexual abuse and, subsequently, for defaming the victim of that abuse. He has been fined hundreds of millions of dollars in a civil fraud case. It is only right that the closest federal prison to Mar-a-Lago should bear his name,” Rep. Gerald Connolly commented. “I hope our Republican friends will join us in bestowing upon Donald J. Trump the only honor he truly deserves.”
In New York, efforts by liberal politicians to rename Donald J. Trump State Park—established in 2006 on land Trump donated for a tax write-off—have consistently failed over nearly a decade.
After his recent popular-vote victory, congressional Democrats have maintained that Trump's efforts to rename landmarks and honorific initiatives by GOP lawmakers aren’t worth their attention, despite lingering resentment toward him. Currently grappling with the aftermath of their November losses, the party has more pressing concerns. “The renaming of the Gulf of Mexico and other absurdities like that we just let go,” said Sen. Adam Schiff.
Yet the question persists: what happens when the miles of the Donald J. Trump Highway accumulate? Or when numerous federal buildings named after him start to emerge?
Rohan Mehta contributed to this report for TROIB News
This new naming policy is a part of an ongoing Trump initiative to modify the names of global landmarks to align with his political and cultural views. In his second term, he has achieved some success; the Associated Press reported on the honor given to the name change for Denali, North America’s tallest mountain, although the Gulf of Mexico will not be affected. He has also expressed his intention to revert the name of Fort Liberty back to Fort Bragg, a name it held from 1918 until 2022, which Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth referenced while discussing the North Carolina base on Monday.
However, these early initiatives are just a prelude to the semantic battles expected in the coming years. The nation is bracing for an intense fight state by state over the renaming of landmarks and public utilities in honor of the president.
The movement has already begun.
Some streets and highways named after Trump remain from his first term. In 2021, Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt signed legislation to name a section of highway after him. The following year, a rural county in Nevada renamed a justice complex—which includes sheriff’s offices, courtrooms, and a jail—in Trump's honor. In 2023, Hialeah, Florida, which has shifted politically to the right, voted unanimously to rename a street after Trump.
Now, as Trump embarks on his second term, efforts are accelerating. Lawmakers from states including Arizona, Missouri, Kentucky, and Wyoming are putting forth measures to designate specific roadways as the “Donald J. Trump Highway.” Meanwhile, local officials in Garfield County, Utah, recently rejected a proposal to rename a scenic byway after Trump.
Congressional attempts to honor Trump are ambitious, as evidenced by the enthusiastic reception he receives during events like the State of the Union address. In line with this, Rep. Greg Steube introduced a measure last year to designate the exclusive economic zone of the United States as the “Donald John Trump Exclusive Economic Zone of the United States.” This zone encompasses nearly all U.S. coastlines—both east and west.
Last week, Rep. Addison McDowell proposed a bill to rename Washington’s Dulles International Airport as Donald J. Trump International Airport after a similar effort last year failed to gain traction in the House.
Trump is known for attaching his name to a wide array of ventures, from apartment buildings and golf courses to a variety of products and events. However, the current efforts to honor him mainly stem from MAGA lawmakers eager to gain his favor by memorializing his first term and anticipating future achievements.
“WHEREAS, President Trump’s actions during his first term had a positive effect on the American people and the resilience of American government; and WHEREAS, President Trump was elected to be President of the United States on November 5, 2024, becoming only the second president in our nation’s history elected to two non-consecutive terms in office; and WHEREAS, for his accomplishments in the past and for all the things he will do for our country over the next four years,” a resolution in the Kentucky legislature states. “President Trump is worthy of tangible recognition by the Commonwealth of Kentucky.”
So far, partisan disputes regarding homage to Trump have been minimal, primarily occurring in red states. However, as efforts to honor the Trump name cross into blue states, they face pushback. Before various legal challenges against Trump halted momentum, a group of Democrats in Virginia opposed the renaming of Dulles airport by introducing a bill to rename a federal prison in Miami after him.
“I see no reason to wait. Donald Trump faces nearly 100 felony charges. He has been found liable of sexual abuse and, subsequently, for defaming the victim of that abuse. He has been fined hundreds of millions of dollars in a civil fraud case. It is only right that the closest federal prison to Mar-a-Lago should bear his name,” Rep. Gerald Connolly commented. “I hope our Republican friends will join us in bestowing upon Donald J. Trump the only honor he truly deserves.”
In New York, efforts by liberal politicians to rename Donald J. Trump State Park—established in 2006 on land Trump donated for a tax write-off—have consistently failed over nearly a decade.
After his recent popular-vote victory, congressional Democrats have maintained that Trump's efforts to rename landmarks and honorific initiatives by GOP lawmakers aren’t worth their attention, despite lingering resentment toward him. Currently grappling with the aftermath of their November losses, the party has more pressing concerns. “The renaming of the Gulf of Mexico and other absurdities like that we just let go,” said Sen. Adam Schiff.
Yet the question persists: what happens when the miles of the Donald J. Trump Highway accumulate? Or when numerous federal buildings named after him start to emerge?
Rohan Mehta contributed to this report for TROIB News
