Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer accused the Trump administration on Sunday of quietly trying to rename New York's Penn Station after Donald Trump, citing a Transportation Department letter sent to Senate committee leaders.
During a weekly Sunday press conference carried live by LiveNOW from FOX, Schumer said Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy sent a letter on Wednesday laying out the administration's priorities for the Penn Station rebuild. According to Schumer, one of those priorities — buried in a small bullet point — directs Amtrak to rename the station.
"The letter never says what the name would be. It doesn't have to. We know what it is," Schumer said. "The administration wants Donald Trump's name on that station."
Nobody in New York wants Penn Station named for Donald Trump.
Schumer claimed the push is not new. He said that during past negotiations over Gateway funding, Trump tried to cut off the money and that one of the things he wanted in return was to name Penn Station for himself. Schumer said he told Trump "F.W." — an apparent abbreviation — and that it didn't happen. "It ain't happening," Schumer said Sunday.
Schumer also pointed to Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy's own words. When asked what the name would stay, Schumer said, Duffy responded: "Trump Station has a nice ring to it." Schumer added, "maybe to him because Trump."
Earlier in the broadcast, anchor Andy Macnow noted the press conference would also cover the latest on Iran and other subjects. The Penn Station remarks were among the opening topics Schumer addressed.