Donald Trump could soon touch down at “Donald J. Trump International Airport” en route to his frequent Mar-a-Lago golf getaways.
The GOP-controlled Florida House voted 81-30 on Tuesday to rename Palm Beach International Airport after the president, a day after his company filed trademark applications for “Donald J. Trump International Airport.”
A corresponding measure moved to the Senate floor after clearing a committee on Tuesday.
Republican lawmakers have eagerly lined up behind the name change, with the bill’s co-sponsor, Republican state Rep. Meg Weinberger, noting that Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort lies just five miles from the airport.
The 79-year-old president decamps in Palm Beach nearly every weekend to play golf and throw tacky parties.
During a bitter debate between Republicans and Democrats on the House floor on Tuesday, GOP state Rep. John Snyder claimed that Trump has transformed Palm Beach into “one of the most desirable and important locations in the world” and called Mar-a-Lago the “winter White House” and “a symbol of the power of the United States,” Florida Phoenix reported.
Democrats countered that Trump’s legacy is far from pristine, pointing to his two impeachments and 34 felony convictions for falsifying business records in New York.
If signed into law, the name change would cost the airport $5.5 million to remake signs, uniforms, promotional products, equipment, and more, according to Palm Beach County’s department of airports.
Florida House Minority Leader Fentrice Driskell noted that Trump’s holding company, DTTM Operations LLC, filed with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for “intent to use” the names “President Donald J. Trump International Airport,” “Donald J. Trump International Airport,” and “DJT,” which may be the airport code Trump hopes “PBI” will change to.
“It feels like the grift is happening,” Driskell said.
But Trump’s trademark attorney, Michael Santucci, said the president would waive any trademark claim to his name for the airport and is deeply honored by the proposed renaming.
“To be clear, the president and his family will not receive any royalty, licensing fee, or financial consideration whatsoever from the proposed airport renaming,” Santucci told USA TODAY. “The Trump Organization is, and always has been, willing to provide this right to his hometown county at no charge.”
Still, trademark attorney Josh Gerben writes that Trump’s trademark application is “completely unprecedented” in the history of the presidency.
“The move raises unusual questions about the intersection of public infrastructure and private brand ownership,” he writes. “While presidents and public officials have had landmarks named in their honor, a sitting president’s private company has never in the history of the United States sought trademark rights in advance of such naming.”
Trump, who slapped his name on the Kennedy Center in December, lost Palm Beach County, typically a Democratic stronghold, to Kamala Harris by less than 500 votes in 2024.
The Palm Beach County Commission has not had the chance to weigh in on the effort to rename its airport, according to Florida Phoenix. The airport handles around 8.6 million passengers per year, according to The Palm Beach Post.
The Daily Beast has reached out to the White House for comment.
