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US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order seeking to change the name of Lake Ontario to Lake America. The move comes after trade talks between the US and Canada collapsed last week, and the US imposed new 50% tariffs on $20bn worth of Canadian goods. Canada will implement "dollar for dollar" counter-tariffs next month.
Trump said the renaming of the lake, which straddles both countries, was effective immediately. He has broad discretion over how the US recognises landmarks but other countries do not have to follow. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney responded that "things must be called by their name, and this lake is called Lake Ontario - today and forever."
The executive order gives the US Department of the Interior 30 days to update the name change with the Geographic Names Information Service. Carney noted that the name Lake Ontario could be traced back more than 400 years, adding that it preceded the formation of the Canadian Confederation and the US Declaration of Independence. Trump's Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum applauded the move, while Democratic lawmaker Debbie Dingell called it "idiotic" and announced plans to introduce a bill to nullify the name change.