WASHINGTON —President Donald Trump suggested his threat to rename Lake Ontario to Lake America isn't necessarily a joke as he digs in further in a widening trade war with Canada.
Trump on Aug. 26 compared his proposed renaming of one of the five Great Lakes to his prior action to rename the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America, which he formalized via signed proclamation
on his first day of his second term."You saw the Lake Ontario thing. People thought I was kidding, maybe I wasn't," Trump said with a slight chuckle during an interview on conservative commentator Glenn Beck's radio show. "Because the last one you saw was the Gulf of Mexico is Gulf of America. Now, we have a gulf and we have a lake. It's very simple."
Lake Ontario to Lake America in trade war
Trump made the remarks as he defended his sweeping 50% tariffs slapped on many goods from Canada after trade negotiations between the two countries fell apart last week. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney countered by hitting U.S. exports with tariffs ranging from 15% to 50%. Trump has threatened to also double tariffs on automobiles and auto parts from Canada from 25% to 50%.
"They charge tariffs, they take advantage of us as though they were a state, and they're not a state," Trump said. "And they've taken our car industry, and they've taken our agriculture industry. You know, the farmers can't sell anything in there because the tariffs are so enormous. And yet they want to sell with us without any tariffs."
Trump said Canada doesn't "have anything that we have to have," adding, "It's time to teach Canada you can't do this anymore."
Can Trump actually change the name of Lake Ontario?
Lake Ontario's name, which goes back to the 17th century, comes from the native Iroquois tribe's word "Ontarí'io," meaning "lake of shining waters," according to the Center for Great Lakes Literacy. The name first started appearing on maps of European explorers in the 1660s.
Naming lakes, rivers other geographic features in the United States is the responsibility of the U.S. Board on Geographic Names, which is made up of representatives from several federal agencies. A proposed renaming of a body of water is typically the subject of a formal review process.
The Board of Geographic Names in February 2025 acted on Trump's order to formally change the name of the Gulf of Mexico. Despite the rebranding ‒ which forced the federal government to refer to the Gulf of America ‒ the international community including Mexico still refers to the body of water as the Gulf of Mexico.
It seems unlikely other world leaders would adhere Trump's renaming of Lake Ontario to Lake America. Canadian leaders, meanwhile, have made clear they would ignore any action from Trump to rename the lake.
"We'll always call it Lake Ontario. Period. We're proud of our Great Lakes," Mélanie Joly, Canada's ministry of industry, told reporters in response to Trump's threat. "While all these shenanigans are happening, we'll just be smart, we'll be strategic and we'll fight back."
Reach Joey Garrison on X @joeygarrison.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump says 'maybe I wasn't' kidding about renaming Lake Ontario to Lake America
