WASHINGTON, D.C. ~ In the midst of a trade war with Canada, U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday to rename Lake Ontario as “Lake America” in the United States.
“Now we have a lake, and now we have a gulf,” Trump said in a video posted to Truth Social announcing executive order.
His declaration for a name change was not recognized by many. Canadian officials will not recognize the name change, with Canadian prime Minister Mark Carney stating that the lake will remain lake Ontario “then, now, and always.”
“The name Lake Ontario comes from the Wendat word Ontari’io, which, appropriately, means ‘the lake is beautiful, the lake is big,” he wrote on X.
On Tuesday, Trump imposed 50% tariffs on about $20 billion worth of Canadian imports, while Prime Minister Mark Carney is retaliating with dollar-for-dollar counter-tariffs starting the day after Labor Day.
