Trump’s name on peace institute

The Trump administration has renamed the U.S. Institute of Peace after President Trump and has planted the president’s name on the organization’s headquarters despite an ongoing fight over the institute’s control.

- By MICHELLE L. PRICE AND Gary FIELDS

It’s the latest twist in a seesaw court battle over who controls the U.S. Institute of Peace, a nonprofit think tank that focuses on peace initiatives. It was an early target of Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, a White House advisory team, this year.

On Wednesday, the State Department said it renamed the organization to the Donald J. Trump Institute of Peace to “reflect the greatest dealmaker in our nation’s history.” The new name could be seen on its building, which is near the State Department.

Trump has spent months openly lobbying for a Nobel Peace Prize even though he was passed over for this year’s installment — arguing he had a hand in easing a series of conflicts around the world. But Trump has also ordered strikes on suspected drug vessels off the coast of Venezuela and repeatedly threatened that attacks on land could be coming, which would be an act of war against that country.

The takeover of the Peace Institute was also anything but peaceful, with his administration seizing the independent entity and ousting its board before affixing his name to the building.