Revealed: Trump already made plans to personally profit off of airport name change

President Donald Trump is already hard at work making sure the framework is in place for him to personally make money from his name being added to major airports.

That's according to a Monday article by attorney Josh Gerben, of the firm Gerben IP. Gerben wrote that Trump's holding company that manages his intellectual property — DTTM Operations LLC — filed three trademark applications on February 13 and 14. One is for "President Donald J. Trump International Airport," another is for "Donald J. Trump International Airport" and the third is for "DJT."

The trademark applications were filed on an "intent to use" basis, meaning that Trump aims to stake a claim on the term in question before it is used in commerce. DTTM Operations LLC manages trademarks for the use of Trump's name on a slew of hotels, residential buildings and various consumer products.

If the trademark application is approved by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, it would mean the president could feasibly get a share of profits from "a range of branded merchandise, including clothing, handbags, luggage, jewelry, watches, and tie clips," per the application. Gerben also noted that the president's name "could be accompanied by a broader licensing program associated with merchandise."

"The move raises unusual questions about the intersection of public infrastructure and private brand ownership," Gerben wrote. "While presidents and public officials have had landmarks named in their honor, a sitting president’s private company has never in the history of the United States sought trademark rights in advance of such naming."

"I should be very clear: these are trademark filings that are completely unprecedented," he added.

The trademark applications were filed roughly a week after it was reported that Trump attempted to hold funding hostage for a $16 billion infrastructure project connecting New Jersey and New York via an underground railway tunnel in exchange for Dulles International Airport to be named after him. He also reportedly wanted Penn Station in New York to bear his name.

In addition to Dulles itself, Trump's third trademark application may also be related to a proposed renaming of moving walkways at the Virginia airport. Susan Saarinen, who is the daughter of the engineer who designed Dulles' transport system, suggested that moving walkways be named "DJTs," or "Direct Jet Transports," in a bid to convince Trump to keep them if they bore his initials.

"It’s a name that fits,” Saarinen told the Washington Post in January. "Mr. Trump would like to name the airport after him, because he likes his name I guess, and he likes to name things. And if a 'DJT' happens to work for that, it works for me."

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