New Louisiana bridge named after Trump passes state house

A new bridge spanning the Mississippi River will likely be named after President Donald Trump after the full Louisiana state house approved the bill to build the bridge, which could cost as much as $3 billion, WWL radio reported Tuesday.

State Rep. Jeremy Lacombe said that they're hoping that they can get federal funding for the bridge to be built, and that naming if after Trump might help.

“We need this bridge more than anything," he said. "We need the bridge for hurricane evacuations; we need the bridge so that our people can have a way of life; we need the bridge for economic security. We need the bridge for a whole host of issues."

While Democrats voted against the bill, none of them spoke out in opposition. It passed 68-26 in the house and now heads to the senate, which is also dominated by Republicans.

The bill says that the bridge will only be named after Trump if the federal government gives the funding to build it and it is given to the state by Jan. 20, 2029, when a new president will be sworn into office.

The bill was introduced by Republican Rep. Michael Echols, who said the bridge is desperately needed to handle traffic across the capital city. He put Trump's name on it to get the president's attention.

“We’re tired of being stuck in traffic. We’re tired of not being able to move commerce, our friends and family over and across that river,” Echols said.

“This project is $3 billion to 4 billion. And we’ve been talking about it for 30 years,” Echols noted.

Over the past year, Trump has spoken with aides about erecting monuments to himself. One discussion was about putting his head on Mt. Rushmore, while another dealt with having a national holiday to celebrate Trump, Zeteo news reported last week.

Trump is currently at work on a 90,000 square-foot ballroom that aides have joked will be named after him.