body: According to [this question](https://law.stackexchange.com/questions/901/copyright-issues-regarding-an-individuals-likeness-and-name-for-a-toy), depending on the jurisdiction, individuals have certain "personality rights" over the use of their name and likeness.
  
  
  I know that, in the US, these can vary from state to state, and that public figures generally lose some of these rights when their name/likeness becomes famous. But I still believe that commercial use of a public figure (e.g. making a toy, selling a shirt, etc) without their permission would violate those rights.
  
  
  Are these rights (again, in the US specifically) affected when an individual becomes a government official, particularly a federal government official? I'm vaguely aware of the idea that the federal government doesn't have the same intellectual property rights as private citizens, but I have no idea if this affects individuals.
  
  
  (The motivation for this question is [this image](https://twitter.com/BevHillsAntifa/status/929770908423561216) which is slightly NSFW but I assume it would apply regardless of the specific usage of the president's likeness.)
  
  
  
title: Usage of the US President's likeness without his consent