'Scowling Trump' face soon to appear on US passports: report

Major changes could be coming to U.S. passports as part of President Donald Trump's widening effort to remake the government in his own image.

The State Department is finalizing a radical redesign of the U.S. passport that will feature the 79-year-old president's portrait, according to sources with knowledge of the project who shared images currently under consideration with The Bulwark.

"According to the images of the passport redesign provided to The Bulwark, the inside cover of the new State Department-issued document will feature a scowling Trump — taken from his second inaugural portrait — superimposed over the Declaration of Independence, as well as the president’s signature in gold," the publication reported. "A more traditional patriotic image—a section of the John Trumbull painting Declaration of Independence — is reserved for the back cover."

The redesign, officially justified as part of the 250th anniversary celebration of American independence, represents the first time a sitting president's image will appear on a modern U.S. passport, and the State Department is planning a limited run of 25,000 Trump-emblazoned passports, pending final approval.

The timing coincides with Treasury Department plans to produce Trump-featuring coins — both a controversial $1 coin for general circulation and a large commemorative gold coin — and the National Park Service emblazoning Trump's face on park passes.

Experts have questioned the precedent. Edward Kolla, a Georgetown University professor specializing in passport history, called the decision "wacky," noting that no modern U.S. passport has featured a sitting president, and no foreign passport has featured any head of state. Historically, American passports were issued in the secretary of state's name, not the president's.

The current passport design, in use since 2021, features Francis Scott Key observing the British bombardment of Fort McHenry alongside "The Star-Spangled Banner" lyrics, and includes a quote from 19th-century activist Anna Julia Cooper celebrating human freedom.

The passport redesign represents the latest in Trump's broader campaign to place his name and likeness across government properties.

His signature will appear on future currency, his name adorns newly renamed federal institutions including the U.S. Institute of Peace and the Kennedy Center, and he has created government websites like TrumpRx.gov for prescription drugs and introduced premium "Trump Card" visas costing up to $5 million.