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GOP Lawmaker Urges Feasibility Study to Add Trump to Mount Rushmore

The National Park Service says the surrounding granite cannot support another face, prompting objections from Lakota Sioux leaders over sacred land concerns.

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Representative-elect Andy Ogles, a Republican from Tennessee, holds the number one pick coin during the biennial office lottery on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, US, on Friday, Dec. 2, 2022. New members compete for space in the House's office buildings with the luckiest getting their pick of larger offices or space closer to the main Capitol building, while other members and their staff will be relegated to less-desirable locations for the next two years. Photographer: Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Overview

  • On July 3, Rep. Andy Ogles sent a formal letter to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum urging a study of the technical, legal and cultural viability of carving President Trump’s likeness on Mount Rushmore.
  • The proposed review would solicit input from experts and the public on logistical challenges and preservation risks.
  • Mount Rushmore National Memorial and engineering firm RESPEC have repeatedly found no structurally sound rock available for additional carvings.
  • The Interior Department says it carefully reviews congressional correspondence but has not scheduled a feasibility assessment or public hearing on the proposal.
  • Lakota Sioux and other Native American groups object to any modifications on sacred tribal land where the monument stands.