Trump Proposes Renaming ICE to NICE: A Look at His Past Rebranding Attempts

At 11:00 PM on Sunday night, former President Donald Trump endorsed a conservative influencer’s proposal to rename Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to National Immigration and Customs Enforcement (NICE). His reasoning? "So the media has to say NICE Agents all day everyday."

Trump tweeted,

"GREAT IDEA!!! DO IT."

This endorsement aligns with Trump’s history of pursuing rebranding opportunities, even when they lack widespread adoption or practical impact.

Trump’s Past Renaming Efforts

Days after his inauguration in 2017, Trump announced that the Gulf of Mexico would be renamed the "Gulf of America." However, this rebranding did not gain traction and remains unrecognized.

A few months later, he proposed renaming the Department of Defense to the Department of War. While this change reflected a more literal description of the agency’s function, it did not alter its operations or budget allocations.

Self-Centered Rebrands and Unchanged Realities

Some of Trump’s renaming attempts have been more overtly self-referential, such as the recent rebranding of the Kennedy Center to the Trump-Kennedy Center.

Despite these efforts, the underlying realities of the institutions remain unchanged:

• The Gulf of Mexico is still the Gulf of Mexico, regardless of its name.
• The Department of Defense (or War) continues to consume over half of the federal government’s discretionary budget, funding military operations in at least seven countries during Trump’s second term.
• Renaming ICE to NICE would not alter the agency’s operations, funding, or controversies, including reports of one custodial death per week.

Trump’s rebranding proposals often prioritize symbolic gestures over substantive change, leaving the core functions and impacts of these institutions intact.