Seven House Republicans introduced a bill to rename Washington Dulles International Airport after the 45th U.S. president and 2024 contender Donald Trump.
Other sponsors are Reps. Chuck Fleischmann (R-Tenn.), Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.), Barry Moore (R-Ala.), Troy Nehls (R-Texas), Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.), and Michael Waltz (R-Fla.).
Dulles International was the 28th busiest in the 2022 Bureau of Transportation Statistics’ rankings with over 10 million passengers boarding there. At the top was Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International in Georgia with more than 45 million passengers, followed by Dallas/Fort Worth International with 35 million passengers.
Dulles International Airport is named after John Foster Dulles, who was secretary of state under President Dwight D. Eisenhower from 1953-1959. Mr. Dulles was known for the U.S. policy of containing communism.
At 11,184 acres, Dulles is the fourth largest airport in the country and is used heavily by Washington officials and lawmakers.
A second D.C.-area major airport is also named after a Republican president—Ronald Reagan International in Arlington, Virginia.
The bill faces tough sledding in the Democrat-controlled Senate. It has been referred to the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.
Strong Reactions
Bill co-sponsor Rep. Nehls told Axios, “I totally support the remaining of Dulles Airport to the greatest president in my lifetime, DJT.”“I support renaming Dulles Airport After Donald Trump,” said Trump ally Roger Stone in a post on X.
Conversely, Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) on X wrote: “I remember Republicans like those who wrote this bill hiding and giving mealy-mouthed responses when asked about the suffering Trump’s Muslim ban caused.
“They know Dulles will never be renamed after Trump. Again, that’s not the point, the point is to suck up to their Dear Leader.”
Former U.S. Rep. Denver Riggleman (R-Va.) said, “No sane VA rep would support it,” adding that GOP lawmakers supporting the bill should “stick” to their own area airports.
“This idea is ridiculous, but sadly real,” said Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-Va.), who is running to be the next governor of Virginia.
“Congress must act on pressing issues like reauthorizing the FAA and passing the national security supplemental. Yet this is what a Member of House Republican leadership focuses on—renaming Virginia’s Dulles airport after Trump.”
Other airports named after presidents include John F. Kennedy International in New York, George Bush Intercontinental in Houston, Gerald R. Ford International in Michigan, Abraham Lincoln Capital Airport in Illinois, Bill and Hillary Clinton National Airport in Arkansas, Wichita Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport in Kansas, and Dickinson Theodore Roosevelt Regional Airport in North Dakota.
“In my lifetime, our nation has never been greater than under the leadership of President Donald J. Trump,” Mr. Reschenthaler, who introduced the bill, told Fox News.
“As millions of domestic and international travelers fly through the airport, there is no better symbol of freedom, prosperity, and strength than hearing ‘Welcome to Trump International Airport’ as they land on American soil.”
Meanwhile, a March 25 poll from Morning Consult shows President Trump backed by 43 percent of American voters, with President Biden at 44 percent. Among Independents, President Trump has a 5 percentage point lead.
In seven key states, President Biden only leads in Wisconsin. President Trump leads in four—Arizona, Nevada, Georgia, and North Carolina. The two are tied in Pennsylvania and Michigan.
