Trump Visits Mount Rushmore to Mark Nation's Birthday — Will His Face Ever Be on the Monument?
President Donald Trump marked the nation's 250th birthday this weekend with a quick visit to Mount Rushmore. Despite his musings about wanting to add his own likeness to the famous monument, experts say that it is unlikely that this plan will ever come to fruition. Read on for all of the details.
Trump's Quest to Add His Likeness to Mount Rushmore
The president returned to Mount Rushmore on Friday to take in the splendor of the monument and its iconic Fourth of July fireworks show. The trip to the popular tourist destination in the Black Hills of South Dakota is raising questions about whether Trump plans to add his own face to the national monument.
Trump has not been shy about his desire to add his likeness to Mount Rushmore. However, experts cast doubt on whether this would even be possible.
The president first brought up the idea of joining former presidents George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, and Thomas Jefferson on the iconic monument when he was running for president a few years ago. Since those early musings, Trump also brought up the proposition on social media, calling it a "good idea." Going back farther, the president brought up the idea when meeting with former South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem at the Oval Office, asking her, "Do you know it’s my dream to have my face on Mount Rushmore?”
Noem later recalled that she started laughing. However, she noted that the president was not laughing and was "totally serious." Trump had to settle for a 4-foot-high model of Mount Rushmore that displayed his image. Noem presented him with this gift as governor in 2020.
Trump has earned a reputation for wanting to mark his time in the executive office with his style imposed on various landmarks across Washington, D.C. and beyond. This desire to impose himself might stop at Mount Rushmore. Most notably, he would need to use a completely different mountain for his likeness.
According to Mount Rushmore sculptor Gutzon Borglum, the stone has limitations that prevent it from adding another person. Borglum wrote in 1936 that “I doubt if it would be possible to change the composition, which is fixed, in any way to include a fifth head."
Despite that obvious limitation, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said during a recent interview that there was room for Trump's face. This was echoed by Trump supporter Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, a Florida Republican, who introduced legislation that would carry out the carving of Trump in an effort to “reflect his towering legacy.”
This piece of legislation is currently stalled with little chance of making it through the Senate. This is because the bill would need a handful of Democratic votes to advance it to the next steps.
The logistical and legislative challenges of adding Trump's face to the monument have not deterred some of his supporters. South Dakota Gov. Larry Rhoden issued a statement on Friday saying that “There’s supposedly not enough room up there to add another face, but if they were able to find some extra space to add someone, I think presidents Trump or Reagan would be good candidates!”
Comparing Trump's Friday Visit to His Infamous 2020 Visit at the Same Spot
Trump returned to South Dakota six years after he first visited as president in 2020. This visit happened at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, during a time when the vaccine was not yet available. Critics of the president said that it was irresponsible for him to visit Keystone during this time of crisis, as it could encourage a super-spreader event.
The president used the 2020 visit to rally against the pervasive cancel culture at the time. In addition to the pandemic, the 2020 visit came just weeks after the death of George Floyd, spurring protests over racial inequality throughout the U.S.
On Friday's visit to the same spot, Trump spoke for roughly 30 minutes about his vow to root out communism, a threat that he claims is surging. In the speech under the faces of four of America's most dignified leaders, Trump said, “You can be loyal to Karl Marx, or you can be loyal to America. You can be a communist, or you can be a patriot. You cannot be both."
It should be noted that Trump did not publicly name who he saw as a communist threat. However, he frequently takes jabs at the Democratic socialists who have recently seen success in New York.
Trump did not mention adding his face to the granite monument during this Friday's speech.
A brief thunderstorm packing hail and heavy rain triggered disruptions to the pre-program at the monument. Guests were forced to take shelter as the storm ignited. However, the skies cleared up just in time for the president's dramatic arrival aboard the new Air Force One.
An elaborate fireworks display erupted over the monument following Trump's speech, thrilling the thousands of spectators who won the lottery to attend the event on the eve of the nation's birthday.
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