Environmentalists sue to erase Trump’s ‘bloated’ face from appearing on national parks pass

An environmental group filed a lawsuit Wednesday asking a judge to stop the government from putting President Trump’s face on a new national parks and monuments pass, saying the country doesn’t want to see his “bloated, fragile, attention-seeking” headshot.

The Center for Biological Diversity said federal law requires the America the Beautiful pass to display the winning photograph from the National Parks Foundation’s annual photo contest. This year, that’s a picture of Glacier National Park, one of the jewels of the park system.

But the Interior Department has decided instead to use Mr. Trump, alongside George Washington.

The Glacier photo was relegated to a new “nonresident” pass that the Trump administration has created to soak foreign visitors for extra entrance fees.

“Blotting out the majesty of America’s national parks with a closeup of his own face is Trump’s crassest, most ego-driven action yet,” said Kieran Suckling, executive director at CBD, an Arizona-based organization that regularly does battle with Mr. Trump over environmental and energy policies.

The pass in question has a photo of Mr. Trump from torso up, with his usual blue suit jacket, red tie and flag lapel pin, next to an image of Washington. Mr. Trump is the more dominant figure in the arrangement.

The 2026 version of the pass coincides with the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.

CBD called the new card a “bait-and-switch” for the thousands of people who participate every year in the photo contest, hoping to win top billing on the parks pass.

They also said the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act, a 2004 law, requires the use of the winning photo.

The lawsuit, filed in federal district court in Washington, names Interior Department Secretary Doug Burgum as the lead defendant. It also names his department, the National Park Service, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins and her department.

The Washington Times has sought comment from the Interior Department for this story.

The annual $80 America the Beautiful pass covers access to sites run by multiple agencies across both departments.

The Interior Department late last month announced what it called a “modernization” of park access. That includes a new fee for foreign visitors, including a $250 fee for the nonresident annual pass.

The department also changed some of the days the park service offers free admission. Gone is Juneteenth, for example, and added in is “Flag Day/President Trump’s birthday.”

CBP said the department provided no reasoning for ditching the photo contest winner and using the images of Mr. Trump and Washington.

Making the offense even more grave, CBD said, the law requires the winning photo to have been taken on public lands. The Trump photo does not appear to meet that requirement.

“Nor does it comply with the official contest rules’ presumption against noticeably or excessively altered images,” the group said.

It also said displaying a president violated the rule that the photo not be “controversial” or “inappropriate.”