12 places Trump's name or image is being added by the federal government

12 places Trump's name or image is being added by the federal government
Source: NBC News

The federal government is undergoing an unprecedented presidential branding makeover, with Donald Trump's name being added to everything from buildings and battleships to a drug website and a park pass.

While Trump has had roads and even an airport named after him since winning a second term in office, his administration has initiated a series of actions to imprint his name and likeness on the federal government well beyond internal documents and communications.

Not all of those efforts have been successful, such as a push to have a New York City train station and Washington, D.C.-area airport named after Trump. But the scope of the others is enormous, including the addition of his signature to U.S. paper currency -- a first for a sitting U.S. president.

The branding is in stark contrast to prior presidencies, including Trump's first term, when the largest branding controversy involved having his name added to Covid relief checks during an election year.

Here's a look at all the places and items where the administration has added Trump's name during his second term.

The first federal building to be named after a sitting U.S. president was the U.S. Institute of Peace headquarters in downtown Washington in December 2025. The agency was named by Congress when it was established through legislation in 1984.

The renaming was carried out by the State Department.

"President Trump will be remembered by history as the President of Peace. It's time our State Department display that," Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a post on social media on Dec. 3, 2025.

About two weeks after the Institute of Peace renaming, the president's handpicked board at the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts voted to add his name to the storied performance venue as well.

"The unanimous vote recognizes that the current Chairman saved the institution from financial ruin and physical destruction," a spokesperson for the center said at the time.

Democrats and some Kennedy family members say the name change is illegal, since the center was established as a living memorial to Kennedy. Rep. Joyce Beatty, D-Ohio, who's an ex officio member of the board, filed a suit challenging the change. The case is still in litigation.

Also in December, then-Navy Secretary John Phelan unveiled "Trump-class" warships during an event at Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.

The "Trump-class battleships," including a vessel dubbed the USS Defiant, will be "the largest, deadliest and most versatile and best-looking warship anywhere on the world's oceans," Phelan said.

"Hopefully we never have to use them, but there will never be anything built like these," Trump said at the event.

The president unveiled his "Trump gold card" visa in December. Foreign nationals can pay $1 million to obtain the card, which enables them to legally live and work in the U.S. once they're approved.

It's "the green card on steroids," Trump said as he displayed the card at the White House. He said companies can buy the gold cards for students so they can stay in the country instead of being "shipped out" after graduation.

As of late April, only one person has been approved for the card, The Associated Press reported.

In March, a federal commission consisting solely of Trump-appointed members approved a 24-carat commemorative gold coin depicting the president in honor of the country's 250th anniversary.

The design approved by the Commission of Fine Arts features an image of Trump in the Oval Office on one side and a bald eagle on the other. The coin needs to be approved by the Treasury Department, which has already announced plans to release a separate $1 coin featuring the president as part of the anniversary celebration.

The Treasury Department announced in March it would be adding Trump's signature to "future paper currency" as another part of the country's 250th anniversary.

"There is no more powerful way to recognize the historic achievements of our great country and President Donald J. Trump than U.S dollar bills bearing his name, and it is only appropriate that this historic currency be issued at the Semiquincentennial," Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in his announcement.

Paper currency typically only bears the signature of the treasury secretary and treasurer, and has never featured that of a sitting president.

The State Department announced in April that it would be issuing a limited number of U.S. passports with a large image of Trump on the inside cover as part of the 250th celebration as well.

Olivia Wales, a White House spokesperson, said in a statement that the "new patriotic passport design provides yet another great way Americans can join in the spectacular celebrations for America's 250th birthday."

The Interior Department revealed in November that it was featuring Trump and George Washington on the front of its annual park pass, citing the 250th anniversary.

That move led to a lawsuit from an environmental group, alleging the department violated a 2004 law requiring the pass to carry a picture by the winner of an annual photo contest. The winner for this year had been image of Glacier National Park in Montana.

Large banners of Trump have been hung from the Justice, Agriculture and Labor departments.

The banner at the Department of Justice reads, "Make America Safe Again."

"We are proud at this Department of Justice to celebrate 250 years of our great country and our historic work to make America safe again at President Trump's direction," a DOJ spokesperson said when the banner was hung in February.

Trump issued an executive order in April directing the Treasury Department to launch a new website called TrumpIRA.gov.

The site aims to help more American workers find and compare private-sector retirement savings accounts.

The Trump administration is launching new savings accounts for children this summer called Trump Accounts.

Created under the "big, beautiful bill," Trump Accounts are tax-advantaged investment accounts for children under 18. Babies born from Jan. 1, 2025, to Dec. 31, 2028, will get $1,000 from the Treasury Department to kick-start their accounts.

"This is something that's so special," Trump said at his State of the Union speech in February.

In February, the administration launched TrumpRx.gov, a self-pay prescription drug website. It offers coupons that people can take to the pharmacy where they fill their prescriptions.

"You're going to save a fortune," Trump said at the news conference launching the site. "And this is also so good for overall healthcare."