President Donald Trump's move to rename Lake Ontario as Lake America has been greeted with a mix of ridicule and disbelief from many local residents and politicians.
Trump on Aug. 27 signed an executive order directing officials to make the change, in an apparent attempt to snub Canada after tariff negotiations broke down and the trade war between the two nations escalated.
Critics of the move have been vocal, and many residents were left confused. The USA TODAY Network spoke with people who live near the shoreline of the lake in New York.
Sharee Turpin of Gates, New York, told the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle her first thought upon hearing Trump's plan to change the name was that it was funny. She has been visiting Lake Ontario every summer
since she was a child. It will always be Lake Ontario to her, she said.
"I just wanted it to stay Lake Ontario because it's part of our history," Turpin said.
Lake Ontario's name predates the founding of both the United States and Canada.
Lake Ontario's shoreline to the north, west and very southwest is the Canadian province of Ontario, which includes the major city Toronto. Its southern and eastern shores lie in New York state, including Monroe County, which houses Rochester. There is an Ontario Beach Park and even an Ontario County in New York.
Trump administration officials and departments blasted out the news on social media on Aug. 27 and praised the name change, cheered on by a smattering of conservatives including Utah Sen. Mike Lee and Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum, who posted: "Make the Great Lakes Great Again!"
Trump has since floated the idea of renaming an ocean.
Trump's name change prompts denial from politicians
Monroe County Executive Adam Bello was among local politicians rejecting the name change altogether.
"After a long day at work, I thought I’d enjoy some Abbott’s at Ontario Beach Park, overlooking Lake Ontario," Bello wrote in a post on social media on Aug. 27 along with a picture of himself sitting on a lakefront bench with a frozen custard treat from the popular Rochester-area chain.
"Lake Ontario will remain Lake Ontario. Ontario Beach Park will remain Ontario Beach Park. The Genesee River is safe. So is the Erie Canal," he said in a statement earlier in the week.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said in response to Trump's Lake America order: "New York won't be calling it that."
Rep. Tom Tiffany of Wisconsin, a Republican backed by Trump in his race for governor, broke with the president over the issue.
"I believe the Great Lakes are the Great Lakes and should stay Lake Superior, Lake Michigan, Lake Ontario," Tiffany said at a campaign event, reported the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, part of the USA TODAY Network.
Republican Gov. of Vermont Phil Scott called the move "petty and disappointing."
New York residents say there are better things to focus on
Mike Olcott and Pat Vito of Greece, New York, near Lake Ontario, told the Democrat and Chronicle they were shocked by Trump's announcement and said there were more pressing issues for the president to deal with than changing the name of the body of water.
"We got crime problems and all kinds of things that we need to take care of," Vito said. "That body of water will always be there."
John Melder, also of Greece, said he laughed at the news: "He (Trump) did the same thing with the Gulf of Mexico and it's still the Gulf of Mexico, so this would still be Lake Ontario," Melder said. "I think people will do what I do and not take it seriously."
The name change is a distraction from U.S. tensions with Canada, said Democratic Rep. Joseph Morelle, whose district includes cities on the lake. Morelle said Rochester families are being impacted by the trade war, while Trump is focused on "playing games with a map," reported the USA TODAY Network.
"This is just another attempt to distract the public from critical issues that deliver undue harm to low-income and middle-class consumers and small business owners," Rochester Mayor Malik Evans said.
Contributing: Madison Scott and Marcia Greenwood, New York Connect Team; Molly Beck and Jessica Jin, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 'Lake America'? Trump's Canada snub prompts backlash – from Americans
