Donald Trump used his Donald Trump Columbus Day remarks at the White House on Friday to call for Christopher Columbus to be put back into the heart of Columbus, Ohio. He said, “We demand that Christopher Columbus be put back into the heart of Columbus, Ohio,” and added, “We want it back. We want it back in Columbus.”
White House Columbus Day
Trump hosted a Columbus Day celebration at the White House and issued a Columbus Day proclamation that declares Oct. 12 as Columbus Day. In the proclamation, he praised Christopher Columbus’s “valor, adventure, and ingenuity,” and wrote that Columbus’ 1492 voyage “set in motion the forces that would culminate in the miracle of July 4, 1776.”
The remarks came ahead of Monday’s observance of Columbus Day. For Columbus residents and city leaders, that puts the statue dispute back into public view as the holiday approaches.
Columbus statue removal
Mayor Andrew Ginther ordered the Columbus statue to be taken down in 2020. It was removed in response to civil unrest that broke out across Columbus and several other US cities that year. Trump’s call on Friday reopened a dispute that had already been settled locally by city action.
That history gives the remark immediate practical weight: any restoration would have to run through Columbus, not the White House. Trump can ask for the statue’s return, but the city controls the site where it was removed.
Shannon Hardin response
Columbus City Council President Shannon Hardin responded on his Facebook page with direct criticism. He wrote, “Mr. President, keep my city’s name out of your mouth,” followed by, “You’ve done enough harm to our residents.”
Hardin also wrote, “How about you focus the time you have left before becoming a lame duck on lowering costs and ending the war in Iran.” His response put the city’s reaction on the record without signaling any move to restore the statue.
Will Columbus city officials act on Trump’s call to restore the statue? The comment did not set out any formal next step, and the matter now sits with Columbus rather than with Trump’s holiday message.
