Washington, D.C., December 4, 2025 – The Trump administration has officially renamed the United States Institute of Peace as the Donald J. Trump Institute of Peace, with the president’s name now displayed in large silver letters above the entrance of the institute’s landmark headquarters on the National Mall.
The dramatic rebranding was announced by the State Department on Wednesday, December 3 — just one day before the building is scheduled to host a high-profile peace agreement signing ceremony between the presidents of Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio celebrated the change on X, writing:
“President Trump will be remembered by history as the President of Peace. It’s time our State Department display that.”
White House officials described the renaming as a tribute to what they call Trump’s unmatched record of deal-making and conflict resolution, pointing to ceasefires in Gaza, de-escalation in Ukraine, and multiple African peace initiatives brokered during his second term.
The move, however, has ignited fierce backlash and comes amid a year-long legal and political battle over control of the 40-year-old institution.
Established by Congress in 1984 and signed into law by President Ronald Reagan, the U.S. Institute of Peace was created as an independent, nonpartisan organisation dedicated to preventing and resolving violent conflict worldwide. Though funded by annual congressional appropriations, it has always operated outside direct executive control, with its own board of directors and ownership of its $200 million headquarters.
That independence ended abruptly in 2025.
Following a February executive order aimed at eliminating “wasteful” federal entities, the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) — co-chaired by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy — targeted the institute for drastic cuts. In March, administration officials forcibly entered the building, changed the locks, dismissed nearly the entire staff, and most board members, and installed new leadership loyal to the White House.
By autumn, federal funding had been slashed by more than 80%, and the remaining skeleton staff were instructed to focus exclusively on initiatives that directly supported Trump’s foreign policy goals.
The original leadership sued, arguing the takeover violated the institute’s congressional charter. A federal judge initially ruled in their favour, but an appeals court later sided with the administration, declaring that the institute’s role in foreign policy gave the president legitimate authority to reshape it.
Critics from both parties have condemned the renaming as an unprecedented act of self-aggrandisement.
Democratic leaders called it “a vanity project that undermines America’s credibility as an honest broker in global conflicts.” Several prominent Republicans, including former national security officials from past GOP administrations, warned that politicising an institution once respected for its impartiality risks long-term damage to U.S. soft power.
Civil society organisations and former USIP staff described the takeover as the effective death of the original institute. One longtime employee, speaking anonymously, said: “This isn’t reform. It’s erasure. The expertise built over four decades has been scattered, and the building is now just a backdrop for photo-ops.”
Supporters of the president, however, praised the move as a fitting tribute to what they describe as a historic wave of peace agreements. They point to the upcoming Rwanda–DRC accord — ending decades of conflict in eastern Congo — as proof that Trump’s personal involvement produces results traditional diplomacy could not.
As workers finished installing the new signage on Wednesday night, the building that once symbolised bipartisan commitment to conflict resolution now bears the name of one man.
The legal fight is far from over. Attorneys for the original board have vowed to take the case to the Supreme Court, arguing that Congress — not the president — has ultimate authority over the institute’s existence and mission.
For now, the world will watch as two African leaders sign a peace deal under a sign that reads Donald J. Trump Institute of Peace — a name that, depending on one’s perspective, either honours a peacemaker or marks the final chapter in the politicisation of an American institution.
