As Donald Trump entered the Oval Office for a second term, Republican legislators bent over backward with “tributes” to the president that would "shock students of history,” according to a newly released book from New York Times authors.
In stark contrast to Republicans’ turn away from Trump after he lost the 2020 election — and was impeached for a second time, a move supported by more members of his own party than any other impeachment in history — all House Republicans endorsed Trump’s 2024 reelection and some proposed various new laws in tribute to him, according to “Regime Change: Inside the Imperial Presidency of Donald Trump,” a new book by New York Times journalists Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan.
“By the time he returned to the White House, Trump was received as a godlike figure on Capitol Hill and members competed to see who could pay him the most lavish respect,” the authors wrote.
That included a litany of legislation honoring Trump, from Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) proposing Trump’s face be carved into Mount Rushmore to Rep. Claudia Tenney (R-NY) proposing officially changing Flag Day on June 14 to “Trump’s Birthday and Flag Day,” according to the book.
Other introduced legislation included changing Washington Dulles International Airport to “Donald J. Trump International Airport” and cutting federal funding to the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority unless it was renamed the “Washington Metropolitan Authority for Greater Access (WMAGA)” and the DC Metro renamed the “Trump Train,” the authors wrote.
Rep. Warren Davidson (R-OH) proposed that the National Institutes of Health study “Trump Derangement Syndrome” and Reps. Brandon Gill (R-TX) and Joe Wilson (R-SC) introduced bills to put Trump’s face on the $100 bill and a newly created $250 bill, respectively.
The book had other revelations that Trump reveled in tech leaders ingratiating themselves to him and that Trump compared himself to dictators such as Hitler, Mao, and Stalin.