Palm Beach International Airport will soon be renamed after President Donald Trump, after the Florida Governor signed a bill clearing the way for the name change.
Florida Governor, Ron DeSantis signed a bill into law that could rename the Palm Beach International Airport to the “President Donald J. Trump International Airport” after the state’s House and Senate passed the legislation last month.
Long known as PBI, the airport would also get a new code: “DJT.” Once approved by the Federal Aviation Administration, the name change take effect July 1. The measure also requires official government records, including maps, to use the new name once approved.
In Palm Beach, a stretch of road from the airport to Trump’s estate was recently renamed Donald J. Trump Boulevard.
The bill for the airport’s name change was introduced by Florida state Representative, Meg Weinberger, who was present at Mar-a-Lago earlier this year for an unveiling of signage for the newly renamed “President Donald J. Trump Boulevard,” the four-mile stretch between the airport and Trump’s private club formerly known as Southern Boulevard. “I am proud to have played a role in to make that happen, and I’m looking forward to the airport where greatness takes off,” Weinberger, a Republican, said at the time.
Along with the renamed airport and road, the president or his allies have sought to put his likeness or name on numerous other entities, including the Kennedy Center, the US Institute of Peace, the administration’s prescription drug website and its high-dollar “gold card” visa, coins and a fighter jet, among others.
Democrats in Florida opposed the name change, saying that it will cost the state’s taxpayers $5.5 million. House Minority Leader Fentrice Driskell, said in a statement, “Instead of working across the aisle with us to advance those bills, Republican leaders decided to prioritize wasting five million of your taxpayer dollars on renaming an airport after the President.”
Florida Democrats have already raised concerns as to whether the president or his family could stand to profit from the airport name change after trademark applications were filed by the private entity that handles licenses and trademarks for the Trump Organization last month.
A spokesperson for the Trump Organization said in February that Trump and his family would not receive royalties or licensing fees from the renaming of the Palm Beach airport, and the House bill’s text specifies that the branding would come at no cost. Kimberly Benza, Trump Organization Director of executive operations, said, “To be clear, the President and his family will not receive any royalty, licensing fee, or financial consideration whatsoever from the proposed airport renaming.”
Trump Unveils Design For Skyscraper Presidential Library
The US President separately revealed plans for a Miami skyscraper planned to house his presidential library.
Trump posted a video to social media that appears to show digital renderings for his presidential library. Set to dramatic music, the video unveils a piercing tower along the Miami skyline emblazoned with the signature “Trump” lettering seen on his other towers.
The video includes panning shots of the tower’s exterior and interior, with a presidential jet parked in the lobby alongside a gold escalator like the one Trump rode while launching his presidential campaign in 2015. Other shots show a giant ballroom like the one he’s planning for the White House, a replica Oval Office, rooftop gardens and a large, gold statue of Trump.
A credit says the design comes from Bermello Ajamil, a Miami-based firm. Trump posted the video with no explanation beyond a link to a new website for the library. The website says, “coming soon,” with a link to donate money.
Trump’s son Eric previously said the library will be “one of the most beautiful buildings ever built” and “an Icon on the Miami skyline.”
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