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HCR 33 was introduced by Delegate Elias Coop-Gonzalez, R-Randolph, whose district includes Spruce Knob. The resolution has eight co-sponsors, all Republicans: Daniel Linville and Patrick Lucas of Cabell County, Henry Dillon of Wayne County, Jordan Bridges of Logan County, S. Chris Anders and Lisa White of Berkeley County, Keith Marple of Harrison County and Charles Sheedy of Marshall County.

Renaming such a landmark is such a drastic step that many people ask why, but let�����Ƶ�s ask why not?

While we�����Ƶ�re at it, there�����Ƶ�s another landmark in northern West Virginia near Spruce Knob. Seneca Rocks could be renamed Trump Rocks. Southern West Virginia could have the Trump Gorge Bridge, and the Racine Locks and Dam on the Ohio River could be renamed the Donald J. Trump Locks and Dam. There�����Ƶ�s precedent for that, as about 30 years ago the Gallipolis Locks and Dam was renamed the Robert C. Byrd Locks and Dam.

HCR 33 does note that the name change must be approved by the U.S. Board on Geographic Names. The Legislature does not have the final word on this question.

Are the delegates who sponsored HCR 33 serious about renaming Spruce Knob? We�����Ƶ�ll have to wait and see whether HCR 33 is pushed through the committee process and onto the floor of the Legislature for a full vote.

This could be nothing more than a joke or a sideshow �����Ƶ� an attempt at levity in a legislative session that could use some given the seriousness of problems waiting for solutions. But it also points to the former trend of naming or renaming public buildings, bridges, highways and other infrastructure for people who are still in office and seeking reelection.

The most notorious of those, of course, was Sen. Robert C. Byrd. He was fond of having his name placed on buildings in a practice that the late columnist Dave Peyton described as taxpayer-funded campaign contributions. Byrd himself bragged about his ability to bring home the bacon in his dedication speech at the Robert C. Byrd Biotechnology Science Center on the Marshall University campus in 2006. �����Ƶ�You�����Ƶ�re looking at Big Daddy,�����Ƶ� Byrd said.

This practice of naming public buildings after living politicians has been pushed to the side since Byrd�����Ƶ�s death in 2010. It should be allowed to lie dormant. There are things in West Virginia that could bear Trump�����Ƶ�s name. Messing with landmarks�����Ƶ� names requires a compelling reason, but at least HCR 33 postpones its idea until long after Trump is gone from the scene.