Trump Orders Renaming of Lake Ontario to 'Lake America' Amid Trade War with Canada
-
On Thursday, Trump signed documents ordering that Lake Ontario be renamed “Lake America” – effective immediately – amid a trade war with Canada.
Compare 16 other versions
NPR NewsPresident Trump is escalating his ongoing dispute with Canada over tariffs with a new executive order renaming Lake Ontario, which sits between New York and Canada, to Lake America.
HuffPostDonald Trump’s decision to rename Lake Ontario as “Lake America” is apparently working out great ― for Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, that is.
BBC NewsPublished US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order seeking to rename Lake Ontario to Lake America.
ABC NewsThe name change is "effective immediately," Trump said. President Donald Trump on Thursday signed an executive order changing the name of Lake Ontario to "Lake America" "effective immediately." This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
New York Times‘Lake America’? These Upstate New Yorkers Aren’t Letting Go of ‘Ontario.’ President Trump on Thursday signed an order rechristening Lake Ontario as Lake America, but businesses around Niagara Falls say they won’t be changing their tune.
Fox NewsTrump signed an order on Thursday renaming one of the five Great Lakes "Lake America" amid an ongoing trade dispute with Canada.
The Guardian USThis is not an isolated embarrassment: the Lake Ontario name change follows the president’s rebranding of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America last year. “We have a gulf and we have a lake – now all we need is an ocean. Maybe we’ll have to change the name of the Atlantic and/or the Pacific,” Trump told reporters.
The Daily WireIn response, Trump declared he was going to change the name of Lake Ontario to Lake Screw You, Canada, whereupon the Canadians broke down and said that if we would just continue to name the lake after them, they would do anything we wanted, so we told them to stop talking with those stupid accents, because it’s just annoying. The deal should be finalized as soon as the White House can find someone who speaks French.
Washington ExaminerThe trade war with Canada seems to have pushed U.S. and Canadian leaders into action. Canada is threatening us with a cutoff of electricity exports, and Trump has signed an executive order renaming Lake Ontario to Lake America. Trump needs to understand that whatever renamings he makes — the Gulf of America, Lake America, etc. — will simply revert to their old names as soon as he leaves office (if not sooner). He should stick to actions that have a real impact.
VoxWelcome to The Logoff: Donald Trump says he’s renaming Lake Ontario. Let’s talk about it.
PBS NewsHourNews Wrap: Trump signs order to rename Lake Ontario as Lake America In our news wrap Thursday, President Trump signed an order to rename Lake Ontario as Lake America as part of his dispute with Canada, FAA officials are reportedly moving to fire two air traffic controllers who allegedly left work early on the night of a deadly crash at LaGuardia Airport and an ICE officer facing charges related to a shooting in Minneapolis was released from a Texas jail.
Associated PressTrump floated the name change in recent days as the U.S. announced it was imposing new tariffs on Canadian goods after talks broke down between the countries. Canada responded with its own retaliatory tariffs on American goods, while the country’s leaders slammed the idea of changing the lake’s name.
NBC NewsNightly News Now Playing Trump orders Lake Ontario renamed ‘Lake America’ 01:25 UP NEXT Americans missing in deadly flood disaster 02:08 Patient battles insurance over coverage for tumor removal 03:28 Jury deliberates in Lindsay Clancy murder trial 02:20 Marine One communication breakdown 02:17 New hearing in Idaho college murders case 01:29
RealClearPoliticsAn executive order to rename Lake Ontario is a bandage on a wounded ego, not the power move Trump seems to think it is. Read Full Article ⟶
Washington PostOn Lake Ontario — er, America — sailors have no plans to change course The Trump-ordered name change was the talk of the docks on both shores of Lake Ontario. But neither American nor Canadian sailors seemed to be taking it too seriously.
The HillSeneca Nation requests reversal on ‘Lake America’ executive order Seneca Nation President J. Conrad Seneca called Friday for President Trump to rescind his order to rename Lake Ontario as “Lake America,” citing a 225-year-old treaty between Native Americans and the U.S. government.  Seneca said in a statement that this name change, which President Trump authorized in a Thursday executive order, violated the terms of…
-
“Let’s just call it Lake Natalie, so we know you’ll start protecting our Great Lakes,” Dingell quipped on X.
Compare 1 other version
Fox News"Let’s just call it Lake Natalie so we know you’ll start protecting our Great Lakes," she wrote on X.
-
"Canada has been ripping us off for a long time on trade," Trump said Thursday. "Very sadly, even the military, you know, we defend Canada for nothing. We don't get anything. They don't pay us to defend Canada."
Compare 1 other version
NPR NewsHe went to blame Canada for the renaming. "We deal with a lot of people, and people oftentimes they'll ask me, 'Who's the worst to deal with on trade?' And I said, 'That's easy, Canada. They are the worst to trade, and they they feel entitled, and just we can't have that,'" Trump explained.
-
"And I just renamed Lake Michigan Lake Wisconsin. See, I can sign napkins that say things, too," Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers, a Democrat, wrote on X alongside a video of himself writing "Lake Wisconsin" on a McDonald’s paper napkin and signing the bottom.
Compare 1 other version
HuffPost“And I just renamed Lake Michigan Lake Wisconsin,” Evers joked alongside a link to an ABC News report on the “Lake America” announcement. “See, I can sign napkins that say things, too.”
-
The conflict might boil down to Trump’s desire to make Canada the 51st state, despite Canada’s consistent rejection of the idea.
Compare 2 other versions
Associated PressTrump has argued that Canada has been ripping off the U.S. on trade and military issues and suggested Canada should be absorbed as the 51st state.
VoxThat doesn’t explain the trade war itself, though. Unfortunately, when my colleague, noted Canadian resident Zack Beauchamp, went looking earlier this week, he couldn’t find an explanation either. As he writes, there’s absolutely no constituency for this fight — other than Trump’s own imperial desires as he keeps joking-but-maybe-not-joking about making Canada the 51st state.
11 details only one outlet reported
Independent claims that didn't surface elsewhere in our corpus. Treat as supplementary — not corroborated across outlets.
-
01 New York Post “Governor Kathy Hochul is for Canada,” Trump fumed on Truth Social, “a Country that has been ripping off New York State for years, especially under her Administration, instead of the good ‘ol USA.”
-
02 The Guardian US Give it a few more months of the disastrous war in Iran and a bruised Trump may well make good on that threat: the man will do anything to distract from his failings.
-
03 Fox News A House Democrat's jab at one of President Donald Trump's most loyal aides prompted a firestorm on social media.
-
04 Washington Examiner The next day, he ratcheted up the pressure on Canada, threatening to increase tariffs on all cars, trucks, automotive parts, and steel that is imported across the border. “They feel entitled, and yet, WE DON’T NEED CANADA, THEY NEED US!” he wrote on Truth Social.
-
05 Associated Press Seneca said the renaming violated the 1794 Treaty of Canandaigua, which was signed by President George Washington and the Haudenosaunee confederacy promising perpetual peace and friendship. The Seneca are one of the six nations of the confederacy, also known as the Iroquois Confederacy.
-
06 NPR News The move is causing some Republicans to push back against Trump, like Senator Susan Collins from Maine, who is in a tight reelection race. Earlier this week, she called the tariffs on Canada a mistake
-
07 Vox This story appeared in The Logoff, a daily newsletter that helps you stay informed about the Trump administration without letting political news take over your life. Subscribe here.
-
08 NBC News Now Playing Trump orders Lake Ontario renamed ‘Lake America’ 01:25 UP NEXT Americans missing in deadly flood disaster 02:08 Patient battles insurance over coverage for tumor removal 03:28 Jury deliberates in Lindsay Clancy murder trial 02:20 Marine One communication breakdown 02:17 New hearing in Idaho college murders case 01:29 FDA approves breakthrough pancreatic cancer treatment 00:55 American tourists among hundreds missing after deadly floods in Nepal 01:43 Tim Curry, star of ‘Rocky Horror Picture Show,’ dies at 80 01:39 New details on Dolly Parton’s death as tributes pour in 02:20 Bodycam video released from arrest of 49ers owner in prostitution sting 01:29 Meta to pay $18 billion to settle child harm lawsuit 01:53 Hundreds evacuated as Texas wildfire explodes 02:02 Hero lifeguard rushes in to save own family 01:15 Police rush into Uber to chase fleeing suspect 01:36 49ers Owner Arrested in Prostitution Sting 01:47 Mystery unfolding underground in New York City 01:19 People in Gary, Indiana without power for 13 days 01:52 In win for Trump, Supreme Court backs restrictions on mail-in ballots 02:12 Ten of thousands evacuated from Nevada wildfire 02:10
-
09 BBC News Canada, however, does not have to recognise name changes made by other countries and officials dismissed the idea in remarks earlier this week.
-
10 The Daily Wire Some foreigners, and other irrelevant people, complain that Americans don’t care about their tiny, unimportant countries. And of course, that’s true, and for obvious reasons.
-
11 HuffPost The navigational service MapQuest reminded everyone of its existence Thursday when the company led a rebellion of sorts against President Donald Trump’s executive order renaming Lake Ontario to Lake America.
Fact Corroboration
Which sources independently confirm the same facts. Hover a claim to see its sources, or a source to see what it corroborates.
Coverage by Perspective
Source Similarity
Connections show how similarly each outlet covered this story. Thicker lines = more similar framing.
Sources (17)
- huffpost
- pbs
- abc
- nypost
- nyt
- ap
- foxnews
- dailywire
- npr
- thehill
- wapo
- nbc
- guardian
- rcp
- washexaminer
- bbc
- vox