Donald Trump said Tuesday he was considering renaming Lake Ontario "Lake America" as his trade war with Canada escalated. The idea mirrors his renaming of the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America by executive order last year. Lake Ontario shares its name with the Canadian province of Ontario, which borders the lake along with the U.S. state of New York, and Toronto, Canada's largest city, sits on the lake's northwestern shore, Korea Times reported.
What did the president say? "The United States is giving serious consideration to changing the name of Lake Ontario to Lake America in that we don't expect to be doing much business with Ontario any longer," Trump said in a social media post. Ontario is Canada's most populous province and the hub of its auto industry, CNA reported. Trump later posted a map, which Korea Times reported was boosted by social media accounts supportive of him, showing "Lake Ontario" crossed out and replaced by "Lake America" in large gold font with a U.S. flag.
Where does the trade dispute stand? After talks between the two countries broke down, the Trump administration imposed 50% tariffs on $20 billion worth of Canadian goods over the weekend, prompting Canadian retaliation, CNA reported. Canada was expected to announce its retaliatory measures on Tuesday. The lake threat comes as Trump renews his push for Canada to become the 51st U.S. state, Korea Times reported. It also reflects a "peculiarly personal spat" with Ontario Premier Doug Ford, who said Monday that the president could "kiss my ass" and threatened a surcharge on exported electricity.
Who responded? Ford responded to Trump's Lake Ontario taunt with the words "A lot of rhetoric," The Hill reported. Canada's minister of industry said, "We'll always call it Lake Ontario." A Democrat also took a jab at Trump over the lake threat, saying, "Let's just call it Lake Natalie."
Figures referenced: Donald Trump. — JudgeMarket.
