WASHINGTON (TNND) — Months after seeking to dismantle the U.S. Institute of Peace, President Donald Trump’s name is now emblazoned on the front of the building in downtown D.C. as he prepares to welcome leaders from Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo to sign a White House-brokered peace deal between the two countries.
The State Department announced Thursday morning that it renamed the former center “to reflect the greatest dealmaker in our nation’s history,” adding, “the best is yet to come.”
Trump issued an executive order in February to dissolve the USIP, which led to its takeover by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), resulting in the removal of its leadership and staff. It was among several other government organizations that Trump “determined are unnecessary.”
USIP challenged the legality of the takeover, and a judge ruled in its favor in May, but the ruling is currently stayed pending an appeal.
The attorney for former USIP leadership and staff, George Foote, said that renaming the building “adds insult to injury.”
“The rightful owners will ultimately prevail and will restore the U.S. Institute of Peace and the building to their statutory purposes,” Foote noted.
White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly told The Washington Post in an email that the USIP was “once a bloated, useless entity that blew $50 million per year while delivering no peace.”
“Now, the Donald J. Trump Institute of Peace, which is both beautifully and aptly named after a President who ended eight wars in less than a year, will stand as a powerful reminder of what strong leadership can accomplish for global stability,” she added.
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USIP was created by Congress in 1984 to resolve conflict; however, it is not a federal agency.