President Trump Tacked His Name Onto the U.S. Institute of Peace

It's no secret that President Donald Trump is obsessed with getting the Nobel Peace Prize. In the lead-up to the announcement of the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize winner in October, Trump campaigned pretty hard. Despite the fact that the deadline to nominate someone was Jan. 31, days into his second presidency, Trump was still determined to emerge as the winner of the coveted prize.

Why did Trump think he deserved to win? The president has claimed to be the architect of several peace deals, including one between Israel and Gaza, as well as another with Armenia and Azerbaijan, which would end a 35-year war. In an October 2025 post to X (formerly Twitter), the U.S. Department of State called Trump the President of Peace while claiming he ended eight wars in eight months. Two months later, he renamed the U.S. Institute of Peace (USIP) after himself.

In a post to X, the State Department shared a photo of the USIP with a new addition to the building's façade. Above the nonprofit organization's name were the words Donald J. Trump. "This morning, the State Department renamed the former Institute of Peace to reflect the greatest dealmaker in our nation's history," said the caption, adding that the best was yet to come.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio shared the State Department's post, writing that, "President Trump will be remembered by history as the President of Peace. It's time our State Department display that." Elon Musk commented under the original post with an American flag. This was an interesting response from a person whose federal agency helped gut the Institute of Peace back in March 2025.

According to Nonprofit Quarterly, under orders by Trump, members of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) forced their way into the USIP building where they seized its headquarters and silenced its operations. Two months later, the USIP got a win when a "federal judge said the firing of its board and employees by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency was illegal," per PBS.

The USIP was established by Congress in 1984 as an independent organization that would promote peace and seek to end conflicts around the world. As of this writing, the organization's website has been mostly taken down, save for a notification that there will be an official signing ceremony of a peace agreement between the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Rwanda at the headquarters on Dec. 4, 2025. Trump would be in attendance, along with the presidents of both countries.

George Foote, an attorney for former leaders and staff of the institute, released a statement about the name change on their behalf, reports NBC News. "Renaming the USIP building adds insult to injury," said Foote. "A federal judge has already ruled that the government’s armed takeover was illegal. That judgment is stayed while the government appeals, which is the only reason the government continues to control the building." Foote is confident justice will prevail.