President Donald Trump has sparked fresh outrage by trying to carve his name into the U.S. Institute of Peace headquarters.
On Thursday, the U.S. Institute of Peace filed an emergency motion asking a judge to stop "plans to carve President Trump's name into the facade of the iconic USIP headquarters building," which Politico legal reporter Kyle Cheney revealed.
The Trump administration had previously put signage onto the building with Trump's name, but the emergency motion revealed his attempt to take it a step further by emblazoning his name on the historic building.
"This is so insane," reacted columnist Richard Hanania in a post on X. "A decent portion of administration legal fights is just Trump trying to put his name on stuff."
Cheney and others noted that Trump's efforts to put his name permanently on the USIP headquarters come amid his escalating campaign to keep his name on the Kennedy Center, where he also considered carving his name into the facade.
"Where we're at," lamented CNN senior political reporter Aaron Blake.
"After stealing and illegally defacing the Kennedy Center, President Trump is now coming for the U.S. Institute of Peace," warned journalist and Robert F. Kennedy researcher Lori Spencer. "Last time I checked, Kerry Kennedy — Health Secretary RFK Jr.’s sister — serves on the board of USIP."
"He's a madman," Dave Troy, a writer and editor, wrote. "25th Amendment now."
The USIP has been locked in a legal fight since Trump moved to dismantle the congressionally chartered institute early this year and DOGE seized its headquarters, NBC News reported. A federal judge ruled the takeover illegal, but that judgment is stayed pending appeal, which is the only reason the administration still controls the building, according to reporting by The Hill.
Trump's name first went up on the facade in December, placed above the engraved words "United States Institute of Peace" ahead of a Rwanda-DRC peace deal signing, per NBC News. Trump, who boasts of ending eight wars, was passed over for the Nobel Peace Prize in October, NBC News noted.
After stealing and illegally defacing the Kennedy Center, President Trump is now coming for the U.S. Institute of Peace.
(Last time I checked, Kerry Kennedy — Health Secretary RFK Jr.’s sister — serves on the board of USIP.) https://t.co/VOsBFrpmX1
— Lori Spencer (@RealLoriSpencer) September 17, 2026