In an underreported on but absolutely huge win for American moral and optics around the world that was effected in the early days of his administration, the Trump Administration banned the flying of any flags except the American flag at American government buildings around the world. Many conservatives are particularly excited, as that means the rainbow, LGBTQIA+ flag can no longer be flown at American buildings around the world. The order allowing only the American flag to be shown has since been expanded upon, and as of the summer of 2025, it applies to aid handed out by America as well.
The move was effected through the One Flag Policy for American outposts, and it provides that, with certain small exceptions, only Old Glory can be flown outside American buildings across the world, both domestically and abroad, and occurred in January of 2025, within days of the January 20 presidential inauguration.
It was President Trump’s surprisingly good Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, who issued the order. Describing the exact terms of the policy in late April as part of a celebration of the first hundred days of the Trump policy, the Rubio-led State Department provided, “One Flag Policy: Implemented that only the flag of the United States of America is authorized to be flown or displayed at U.S. facilities, both domestic and abroad, and featured in U.S. government content, with exceptions made for the Prisoner of War/Missing in Action (POW/MIA) emblem and the Wrongful Detainees Flag, both of which are included in statute.”
In any case, at the time it was effected, the State Department’s incredible new order provided, “Starting immediately, only the United States of America flag is authorized to be flown or displayed at U.S. facilities, both domestic and abroad, and featured in U.S. government content.”
Continuing, the order provided that the American flag has unique meaning, and that meaning shouldn’t be diluted by replacing it with other symbols, saying, “The flag of the United States of America united all Americans under the universal principles of justice, liberty and democracy. These values, which are the bedrock of our great country, are shared by all American citizens, past and present.”
That’s not all. The State Department order also provided that department personnel who violate the order and try to fly other flags, such as the BLM fist and LGBTQIA+ rainbow that are so beloved by the Swamp, will “face disciplinary action, including termination of employment or contract, or reassignment to their home agency.”
Since then, the State Department expanded the idea to include aid packages handed out by the State Department, which will now feature one logo and the American flag rather than a plethora of random logos and symbols. As Secretary of State Rubio posted on X in early June, “No more rainbow of unidentifiable logos on life-saving aid. There will now be one recognizable symbol: the American flag. 🇺🇸”
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Fox News Digital provided a report on the rebranding initiative that the State Department would “consolidate all the logos for its offices under a singular one depicting the American flag.” The outlet further added that the consistent branding will come in place of the “separate logos [that] existed previously for offices, including embassies, bureaus and programs under the U.S. Agency for International Development.”
Commenting on the matter, Darren Beattie, acting undersecretary for public diplomacy at the State Department, said, “There’s some things you look at it, and you have no clue that’s associated with the United States government at all, and that’s obviously contrary to our purposes. If we’re contributing something great overseas, we want that positivity and that contribution to be immediately visually distinguished as something associated with the United States.”
Featured image credit: By Lukys – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=20641701