Ohio Republicans join push for Trump tributes that break presidential tradition

Published On: August 2, 2025

Washington Republicans in Congress, such as Michael Rulli and Bernie Moreno of Ohio, are giving the phrase “hail to the chief” a completely new meaning.

Republicans in Congress have proposed at least ten pieces of legislation to celebrate and remember President Donald Trump while he is still in office, ranging from engraving his face on currency to erecting it atop Mount Rushmore, in the six months since his second inauguration.

The planned tributes to a sitting president, according to political experts, mark a significant break from American customs that forgo such honors until presidents retire or pass away.

According to David Cohen, a political scientist at the University of Akron, there has typically been a reluctance to take actions that would elevate a current individual into a legendary category. Cohen attributes this tendency to the founders’ dislike of kings when they seceded from England. There is nothing like this in American history.

He likened the fawning to the treatment of national leaders by officials in authoritarian countries such as China, North Korea, and Russia.

According to Cohen, Trump has always appreciated those leadership philosophies. Republicans in Congress are aware of this and know that giving Trump a lot of praise will win him over.

The U.S. Senate should formally nominate Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize, Moreno, a Republican from Westlake, sponsored in June. To mark the anniversary of the Trump assassination attempt, Rulli, a U.S. Representative from Salem, suggested making July 13 a national Faith and Defiance Day.

Other proposed laws would allow Trump to serve a third term by renaming key infrastructure in his honor, declaring his birthday a government holiday, and even amending the U.S. Constitution.

Due to constitutional restrictions, the difficulty of enacting laws, and simple practical considerations, only a small number of the measures are likely to become law.

For instance, according to the National Park Service, Mount Rushmore no longer possesses any suitable rock for carving. Additionally, removing the 1866 statute that forbids printing a living person’s likeness on US currency would be necessary in order to place Trump’s image on currency.

However, in what political scientists see as a Republican struggle to demonstrate loyalty to Trump, practicality is irrelevant.

“The current efforts go much, much beyond the notion of recognizing presidents,” said Herb Asher, an emeritus political scientist at Ohio State University. He pointed out that although naming things after public figures has happened before, the extent of this for Trump is really quite different from what we’ve seen in the past.

According to Asher, it’s possible that some people sincerely believe Trump should be acknowledged in those ways because he is the Supreme Leader. Some people think that doing such things is the greatest approach to win over Trump. They understand that Trump enjoys being praised, acknowledged, and all that. They are therefore taking a step that will strengthen their bonds with Donald Trump.

Ohio legislators efforts to honor Trump

For mediating a ceasefire between Israel and Iran shortly after ordering a U.S. military strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities, Moreno contends that Trump should be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. His resolution compares Obama’s and Trump’s peace records and conveys the Senate’s sincere gratitude to President Trump for ending Iran’s nuclear program and associated hostilities in just 12 days.

“With no American boots on the ground, American casualties, or American injuries, President Trump just accomplished what neocons and Democratic globalists have been unable to do for decades: peace in the Middle East with Iran’s nuclear arsenal decimated,” Moreno said in a statement.

According to an administration assessment released in mid-July, Trump’s June orders largely damaged one of three Iranian nuclear refinery sites, but two others might resume uranium processing in a few months, according to NBC News. According to the Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs, the ceasefire has persisted, but it was not supported by any official political agreement or control structure, making it a short-term halt rather than a long-term solution.

According to reports, Trump is fixated on receiving the Nobel Peace Prize. Rahm Emanuel, a former White House chief of staff, attributes Trump’s fixation in large part to the fact that Barack Obama, Trump’s Democratic predecessor and Emanuel’s former employer, received the 2009 prize for his outstanding efforts to advance international diplomacy and inter-cultural collaboration.

Trump has expressed interest in receiving a Nobel Prize on several occasions.

At the White House in 2019, Trump declared, “I think I’m going to get a Nobel Prize for a lot of things, if they gave it out fairly, which they don’t.”

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee was tasked with reviewing Moreno’s resolution, but they haven’t taken any action.

To memorialize Trump and others slain and wounded on July 13, 2024, at the campaign event in Butler, Pennsylvania, where an assassin’s bullet touched the president’s ear, Rulli’s resolution would declare July 13 to be Faith and Defiance Day.

Rullis claimed that when Trump got to his feet after being shot and yelled, “Fight, fight, fight!” he motivated him.

Rulli stated in mid-July that this represents the American spirit: devoted, unyielding, and unstoppable. You have one or two life situations that really affect you and motivate you to be greater than you are. One of them was this. The President was saved by God that day, and that is something that should be remembered for the rest of time.

The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee received his proposal but has not taken any action.

Other Trump tributes

The Ohioans’ actions add to the numerous tributes made by Republican lawmakers who are eager to express their affection for Trump.

The Make Entertainment Great Again Act, presented by Missouri Representative Bob Onder in late July, aims to change the name of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts to the Donald J. Trump Center for Performing Arts.

Kennedy’s niece Maria Shriver was among many who immediately criticized the notion, calling it “mad” in a post on X.

Shriver, a television journalist and former first lady of California, wrote, “It makes my blood boil.” It’s so small-minded, so petty, and so absurd.

A spending plan that would have named the Kennedy Center’s Opera House for first lady Melania Trump was amended by Rep. Mike Simpson of Idaho last month. Renaming the opera house, according to Simpson, would be a great way to honor her love of the arts.

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida submitted legislation directing the Interior Secretary to arrange for Trump’s face to be carved on Mount Rushmore, claiming that Trump will be forever remembered among the greats like Presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, and Theodore Roosevelt.

The renaming of Washington Dulles International Airport as Donald J. Trump International Airport was proposed by Representative Addison McDowell of North Carolina.

Florida Rep. Greg Steubeintroduced a billthat would block all federal funding to the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) until it officially changes its name to the Washington Metropolitan Authority for Greater Access (WMAGA) and renames the Metrorail the Trump Train.

On Valentine’s Day, Rep. Claudia Tenney of New York submitted legislation that would make June 14, Trump’s birthday, a national holiday in addition to Flag Day. According to a statement from Tenney, the bill would recognize Trump as the founder of America’s Golden Age by adding his birthday to the list of government holidays, much as George Washington’s birthday is now recognized.

While Andy Ogles of Tennessee submitted legislation proposing a constitutional amendment that would allow Trump to run for a third term, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia and Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York introduced resolutions to expunge Trump’s two impeachments. According to Ogles, extending Trump’s term beyond what the Constitution permits would guarantee that we can continue to have the fearless leadership that our country much needs.

A number of Republican lawmakers have proposed legislation to feature Trump’s image on banknotes. Texas Representative Brandon Gill wants to see Trump’s image on the $100 bill in place of Ben Franklin’s. As an homage to Trump’s transformative leadership, South Carolina Representative Joe Wilson suggested designing a new $250 bill featuring his image.

Despite their peculiarity, Cohen of the University of Akron believes that some of the legislation might pass.

If you re asking me a year ago, I d say there s not a snowball s chance in hell but now I really can t discount it, said Cohen. Republicans in Congress place a great deal of importance on being on the president’s side and out of his crosshairs, therefore I believe that some of these proposals will likely pass.

Cohen says that Republicans running for re-election will need Trump s support to get what they need to help their districts and states, and also to avoid having him endorse potential primary opponents.

They re not really concerned about the historical legacy of the country, Cohen says of those who have introduced legislation that caters to Trump s vanity. They re only concerned really about their own personal power position with the current occupant of the White House.