A Republican senator is seeking to block living presidents from putting their own name on federal buildings, a split from President Donald Trump, who has sought to attach his name to several buildings in Washington, D.C., during his second term.
Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., floated a number of rules that public officials should have to follow while in office, such as prohibiting the White House from using taxpayer dollars on private ads for themselves. The Louisiana Republican then extended that proposal to block officials from naming buildings after themselves while they are still in office.
“The White House sees it differently, but … you can’t spend public money to … promote yourself,” Kennedy told CBS News’ “Face the Nation” on Sunday. “I also think we ought to have a rule that no politician can have a building named after him when he’s alive.”
It’s not clear if Kennedy will draft a proposal prohibiting those actions, or if Congress would take it up. But it comes at a time when Trump has repeatedly pushed to attach his name to several federal buildings, prompting some legal challenges.
The most notable attempt was the decision by the Kennedy Center to add Trump’s name to the beginning of the name. He even had his name added to the facade of the building, although that was later taken down under a judge’s order.
Trump has since threatened not to provide funding for renovations to the center unless his name is attached.
The Kennedy Center is just one legal battle the Trump administration is involved in. The U.S. Institute of Peace has been changed to the Trump Institute of Peace during his second term, which is reflected on the organization’s website but efforts to permanently engrave his name into the physical building have been halted by court challenges.
The president has suggested adding his name to other sites in Washington, such as Dulles International Airport. He also floated renaming the area around the Lincoln Memorial to be known as Trump Promenade.
“They want to call it the Trump Promenade, but I don’t know if I want to do that, but it’s going to be beautiful,” Trump said in June.