Trump signed an executive order in the Oval Office on Thursday that renames Lake Ontario to Lake America in the United States, a child-like response to Canada’s defensive tariffs after trade talks broke down between the two long-time allies.
Trump said the order would take effect immediately, and suggested the renaming of bodies of water may continue with the Atlantic or Pacific Oceans.
The administration’s push to rename Lake Ontario is likely to remain largely symbolic. Though the executive order directs the Interior Department and the Board on Geographic Names to use “Lake America” in U.S. government references to the Great Lake and remove all mention of Lake Ontario, no foreign governments are bound by the name change.
Listen to audio transcript
00:00
/
00:44