It seems like a few Republican lawmakers want gold slab-serif lettering to welcome Americans flying into the nation’s capital. A bill introduced in the House of Representatives aims to rename Washington Dulles International Airport after former President Donald Trump. The change isn’t likely to become a reality as the Democrats control the Senate and the White House. Still, it shows where legislators’ priorities lie as commercial aviation is in a tailspin with shoddily-built airliners and overstretched air traffic controllers.
Representative Guy Reschenthaler, the Republicans’ chief deputy whip in the House, introduced the bill to rename Dulles. He told Fox News Digital:
“In my lifetime, our nation has never been greater than under the leadership of President Donald J. Trump. 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.”
This isn’t the first time Congress considered renaming Dulles Airport after a former President. In 1990, Senator Bob Dole introduced a bill to rename the facility after Dwight D. Eisenhower. However, the Democrat-controlled chamber voted down the resolution.
It should be clear that preserving the name isn’t a matter of protecting John Foster Dulles’ legacy. Dulles was Eisenhower’s Secretary of State and played a significant role in shaping global politics in the 1950s. Considering Dulles and his brother, CIA Director Allen Dulles, views on overthrowing democratically elected governments, maybe renaming the airport after Trump seems like a one-for-one to house Republicans.
In fairness to House Republicans, National Airport was renamed after Ronald Reagan in 1998, less than a decade after the Gipper left office. During his presidency, Reagan fired 12,000 air traffic controllers after they went on strike in violation of federal law. This decision still impacts commercial aviation today. The bill that renamed National Airport was signed into law by Bill Clinton, a Democrat.