The Trump Organization has applied for a trademark related to this year’s 250th anniversary of the nation’s founding.
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The Trump Organization has filed a series of trademark applications linking the president to the nation’s 250th anniversary.
DTTM Operations, the company that manages President Donald Trump’s intellectual property, filed for the trademark with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on March 6. The organization has close ties to the hospitality business run by Trump’s sons Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump.
The application includes two “Trump 250” images that can be used on stickers, tote bags, drinkware, apparel, sporting goods, and other products. Another design features “converging contrails after five aircraft” with “Trump 250” engraved at the bottom.
This trademark application was first reported by NOTUS.
The announcement comes as some government watchdog groups question whether the president is hijacking bipartisan plans for the milestone and using it for his own benefit. Those concerns arose earlier this year after the president created a nonprofit organization to carry out his 250th anniversary vision. It was separate from America250, a nonpartisan organization created by Congress in 2016 to plan the year’s signature events.
The president appears to support the trademark application, according to filings. The 1946 law governing trademarks prohibits the registration of a living person’s name without his or her consent.
Neither the Trump Organization nor the attorney listed on the filing immediately responded to USA TODAY’s requests for comment.
This is not the first time the company has attempted to trademark its president’s name. In February, the company applied for “Donald J. Trump Presidential International Airport” and “Donald J. Trump International Airport” based on “intended use.” That meant they wanted to claim the name before it was used.
These applications were filed after the president proposed renaming major airports in his honor, including Dulles International Airport outside Washington, D.C., and Palm Beach International Airport in Florida.
Trump has a long history of naming buildings and products after himself. Most recently, the president added his name to the walls of the John F. Kennedy Performing Arts Center and the exterior of the U.S. Institute of Peace, a think tank funded by Congress.
Carissa Wadick covers America’s 250th anniversary on USA TODAY. She can be reached at kwaddick@usatoday.com.
