by Imagine having Donald Trump’s birthday off from work. obtaining a $100 bill featuring a portrait of Trump. landing close to the country’s capital at Donald J. Trump International Airport. visiting the Donald J. Trump Center for Performing Arts to see a performance.
A slew of proposals supported by Republican lawmakers this year would make all of this possible.
Even though Trump is only six months into his second term, some Republicans are prepared to make him a national hero by putting out an ever-expanding list of measures that honor him before the end of his second term. Even putting his visage into Mount Rushmore is a suggestion made by one lawmaker.
This legislative exercise, which combines politics with flattery, serves as yet another clear reminder of how the Republican Party has changed under Trump as members from red-leaning states and congressional districts try to curry favor with the president and maintain ties with his followers.
Despite their seeming levity, the bills have a significant readership, according to Republican strategist Doug Heye, a former communications director for the Republican National Committee.
Heye stated that this is more about a single individual. It’s not, “Look what I’m trying to do for Donald, voters.” It says, “Look what I’m trying to do for you, Donald.”
No time to squander
As soon as Trump’s second term started, House Republicans took swift action to praise him. Seventy-two hours after Trump was sworn in, a bill to rename Virginia’s Dulles International Airport was introduced.
Rep. Addison McDowell of North Carolina, the bill’s sponsor, declared him the best president in his life. And there isn’t a better way to pay tribute to someone than to make their legacy permanent by naming an international airport in our country’s capital after them.
To get Trump on the $100 bill, which now features Benjamin Franklin, Texas Representative Brandon Gill waited a few more weeks before submitting his bill. Despite the fact that living people are prohibited from appearing on U.S. currency by federal law, his legislation mandated that no $100 bill issued after December 31, 2028, could be printed without Trump’s portrait on the front. The purpose of that statute, which was passed shortly after the Civil War, was to prevent the appearance of a monarchy.
Rep. Greg Steube of Florida also proposed renaming the Washington metro system the Trump Train. Additionally, Rep. Claudia Tenney of New York has introduced a bill that would establish June 14 as Trump’s Birthday and Flag Day, a new government holiday.
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida has perhaps the boldest notion. She wants the secretary of the Interior Department to make arrangements for Trump’s image to be engraved on Mount Rushmore alongside those of Washington, Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson, and Teddy Roosevelt. In her workplace, she has two models of it.
According to Luna, Trump has demonstrated not only character resilience but also the ability to do what no other president has been able to do, despite two assassination attempts and a phony impeachment.
South Carolina Representative Joe Wilson acknowledges that he wasn’t first smitten with Trump. Wilson is now carrying a booklet that he distributes to colleagues, urging them to support a bill that would order the Bureau of Printing and Engraving to create and print a $250 bill featuring Trump’s likeness. The celebration would take place on the 250th anniversary of the US Declaration of Independence.
Wilson stated, “I think the president has served in a way that he deserves it.”
There are more than a few lone Republicans participating. The GOP leadership renamed a new savings account for kids from MAGA accounts to Trump accounts as part of their tax cut and immigration law.
Rep. Jason Smith, the chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, explained the name change by saying that Trump is a transformational leader who pushed for them.
The Nobel Peace Prize
Additionally, a number of senators are promoting Trump as a Nobel Peace Prize winner.
Trump said he was kidding when he said he would put an end to the Russia-Ukraine war on his first day in office as president. Trump has failed to resolve that dispute and Israel’s battle against Hamas in Gaza.
However, Trump is still being suggested to win the prize by Republicans and at least one foreign leader, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. While Sen. Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee urged her social media followers to like her post if they believe Trump deserves it, Sen. Bernie Moreno of Ohio has called on the Senate to nominate him.
Recent posts on X by Tenney stated that she had nominated Trump twice and would keep doing so until he receives the prize.
Remembering Melania Trump as well
Rep. Mike Simpson of Idaho has proposed an amendment to an appropriations bill that is currently in the House that would designate the Opera House at the Kennedy Center for First Lady Melania Trump.
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Simpson claimed that until the amendment was introduced, the White House was unaware of it. He claimed that since the theater isn’t currently named after anyone, the endeavor is distinct from renaming Dulles Airport in Trump’s honor.
“We’re trying to keep the arts alive in this bill,” Simpson said, adding that she has always been an advocate for the arts. Therefore, we believed that was the right thing to do.
Astute politics
Applauding Trump in legislation is just smart politics for many Republicans. Numerous politicians were propelled into office by Trump’s endorsement, and his backing may prove beneficial as individual members work to enact their desired laws.
Additionally, Trump actively uses his support to reward supporters and replace members he believes to be disloyal. He has already called Gill and Luna MAGA Warriors and endorsed them for reelection in 2026.
However, a Trump endorsement has influence outside of the primary, particularly during the midterm elections.
According to Steve Stivers, the former chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee, they just give Trump supporters a signal to turn out, trust someone, and cast their ballots for them in the general election.
The surge of Trump tributes has drawn attention from Democrats, who see it as an opportunity to paint a submissive Republican majority as more concerned with appeasing Trump than assisting Americans.
House Republicans are still embarrassing themselves, according to New York Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries. Such individuals are sycophants.
