US President Donald Trump’s vision of joining Mount Rushmore’s monumental ranks has reemerged since his return to office, rekindling debate over whether the Black Hills sculpture could be altered to feature a fifth president. But geologists, historians, and park officials agree: despite political enthusiasm, the combination of fragile rock, structural risks, and artistic precedent makes the idea all but impossible.

Four presidents are already immortalized on Mount Rushmore: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln. The notion of adding Donald Trump’s likeness has reemerged since his return to office, after a congresswoman from Florida introduced a bill in January proposing his face be carved into the monument.

No room on the mountain The National Park Service, which manages Mount Rushmore, has stated unequivocally that there is no safe space left for new carvings.

“The carved portion of Mount Rushmore has been thoroughly evaluated, and there are no viable locations left for additional carvings,” the agency said in a statement, cited by The New York Times, underscoring that the memorial is considered a completed work of art.

Even Gutzon Borglum, the sculptor who spent 14 years blasting and chiseling the mountain, concluded there was only enough stable granite for four 60-foot faces.

Fractures and flaws in the rock Adding another figure could trigger catastrophic damage.

Paul Nelson, a geomechanical engineer who managed the site’s Rock Block Monitoring System, told the news outlet, “If you remove material, you could be removing support,” explaining that adding a new carving might destabilize the entire monument.

Borglum himself encountered these problems repeatedly. His crews spent 18 months carving Jefferson’s original placement only to discover the rock was riddled with cracks so severe they had to blast the face away and start over.

A massive crack cleaves the formation next to Washington, and Lincoln’s face is held together by friction alone. Nelson warned that cutting into the rock to create new features could even “cost Abe his nose.”

Fractures and redesigns Mount Rushmore’s own history underscores these challenges. Sculptor Gutzon Borglum as per the report changed his design nine times due to poor-quality rock.

Workers reportedly spent 18 months carving Jefferson’s first face to Washington’s right, only to find the stone so riddled with cracks that it had to be blasted away. Jefferson was ultimately relocated to Washington’s other shoulder, while Roosevelt was wedged into a narrow space with a crack running across his left eye.

According to the news report, Borglum concluded there was only enough suitable granite for the four 60-foot faces that ultimately defined the monument.

Geological constraints limit any modifications In the 1990s, scientists mapped 144 fractures and faults, describing the mountain as a network of precarious blocks akin to a shattered windshield.

Park rangers have noted that even Jefferson’s gaze was angled awkwardly to avoid visible fractures across his face.

Artistic boundaries Beyond the geology, there is a strong philosophical barrier to changing the memorial.

Robin Borglum Kennedy, the sculptor’s granddaughter, is among those firmly opposed: “It was conceived as a tribute to the ideals of America, not to any one man,” she said.

Supporters of Mount Rushmore’s original vision point out that it has never been altered to add figures like Franklin Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, or Ronald Reagan, all of whom inspired serious proposals.