Cornyn moves to honor Trump with Highway 287 renaming bill

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UNITED STATES - JULY 15: Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, leaves the Senate Republicans' lunch in the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday, July 15, 2025. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

Sen. John Cornyn introduced a bill that would rename Highway 287 as Interstate 47 in honor of Donald Trump.

Cornyn said on social media the renaming would honor "the most effective and influential president of our lifetime."

What they're saying:

"Texas is Trump Country, and this bill cements that legacy by designating nearly 1,800 miles of open road from Texas’ Gulf Coast to the edge of the U.S.-Canadian border as I-47 to forever be remembered as Trump Interstate," Cornyn said. "By upgrading one of our nation’s longest highways to a future interstate, this legislation will increase economic growth and improve safety, all while honoring the most consequential president of our lifetime."

Highway 287 is the second-longest three-digit highway in the U.S. and runs from Port Arthur to Choteau, Montana. According to a release, more than 923 million tons of freight moved along the highway in 2022 in Texas alone.

The highway hits Texas cities like Beaumont, Fort Worth and Amarillo. Last year, the Texas Department of Transportation ran a study on converting the highway to an interstate in Texas and found it would cost around $24.52 billion, while the project would generate 46,885 jobs and an estimated $11.6 billion in GDP gains by 2050.

The move comes as Cornyn is locked in a tight U.S. Senate runoff race with Attorney General Ken Paxton. The president has yet to make an endorsement in the race. 

Early voting in the runoff begins Monday. The winner of the May 26 runoff will face Democrat James Talarico in November.