Limited-Edition U.S. Passports Featuring Trump to Be More Widely Available

The State Department announced that Americans outside Washington, D.C., will soon have access to limited-edition U.S. passports featuring a picture of President Donald Trump. These passports commemorate America’s 250th birthday.

Previously, only the Washington, D.C., passport office offered these passports for in-person applicants. Now, 27 passport agencies nationwide will provide them starting next month. Trump’s image and signature appear within these documents, marking his unique position as the first living president included in a U.S. passport.

This initiative is one of several ways Trump’s likeness is being incorporated into symbolic American items. His image is already on a gold-finished commemorative coin issued by the U.S. Mint to celebrate the nation’s founding. Efforts are also underway to feature Trump’s signature on all new U.S. paper currency, another first for a sitting president.

The Department of State stated, “In response to overwhelming demand, the Department of State is making an additional 250,000 of the special commemorative passports available to the public. Americans all across the country will now have the opportunity to apply for one of these additional special passports, known as the ‘Patriot Passport.'”

Passport offices in cities such as Centennial, Colorado; Chicago; Dallas; Detroit; New Orleans; New York; and Stamford, Connecticut, will host one-day events to offer these Trump passports, beginning on August 8. Additional locations will be added throughout August.

Applicants for the special passport must visit in-person on the specified day available on the department’s passport website. Those seeking traditional passports need to apply on different days. The commemorative passport cover reads “United States of America” in bold gold print at the top and “Passport” at the bottom. A gold laminate American flag with the number 250 encircled by stars decorates the back cover’s bottom.

Currently, U.S. passports include Mount Rushmore depictions featuring George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln, as well as images of the Statue of Liberty, the Liberty Bell, and Independence Hall. Passports contain quotations from leaders like Martin Luther King Jr. and past presidents including Washington, Jefferson, Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, and Dwight Eisenhower.

The incorporation of Trump’s picture and signature is the latest move to enhance his visibility, following attempts to place his name on the U.S. Institute of Peace building and the Kennedy Center, although the latter was later removed by court order. Trump has also proposed a new White House ballroom and a large arch at a Washington, D.C., entrance from Virginia.