Trump To Be Added To Mount Rushmore

President Trump is returning to Mount Rushmore on Friday for a pre-Independence Day celebration as renewed calls from some of his supporters seek to have his likeness added to the iconic national monument.

Trump is scheduled to travel to South Dakota to deliver remarks and attend a fireworks celebration marking America’s 250th anniversary. His visit comes as some Republican allies continue promoting the idea that Trump should eventually join the four presidents already carved into Mount Rushmore.

The idea of adding Trump to the monument has circulated since his first term. In 2018, then-Rep. Kristi Noem recalled inviting Trump to visit South Dakota, saying he responded that it was his dream to have his face on Mount Rushmore. Noem later said she initially laughed but realized Trump appeared serious.

Trump has also publicly joked about the proposal over the years. When asked in 2019 whether he believed he deserved a place on Mount Rushmore, he said that answering “yes” would generate bad publicity. During a 2020 Independence Day celebration at the monument, Noem presented Trump with a replica of Mount Rushmore featuring his face. Later that year, Trump denied reports that he had personally pushed for the idea but wrote on social media that, based on what he viewed as his accomplishments, it “sounds like a good idea.”

Since returning to office, some Republicans have attempted to advance the proposal. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna introduced legislation calling for Trump’s likeness to be added to the monument, while Rep. Andy Ogles has urged Interior Department officials to consider the idea.

Despite those efforts, the proposal faces significant obstacles. The National Park Service has previously stated that Mount Rushmore is considered a completed work of art and that there is no remaining space suitable for another presidential carving. Experts have also said adding another face would require congressional approval, substantial funding, and major engineering work.

Mount Rushmore, carved between 1927 and 1941, features Presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln. The monument was designed to represent key chapters in American history, though it has also remained the subject of longstanding controversy because it was built on land considered sacred by the Sioux Nation.