Trump Officially Renames Lake Ontario ‘Lake America’ as Canada Trade War Intensifies
President Donald Trump officially renamed Lake Ontario “Lake America” on Thursday, following through on a threat he made earlier this week as tensions between the United States and Canada continue to escalate over trade.
Trump signed an executive order from the Oval Office making the change effective for the U.S. federal government. The order directs Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and the U.S. Board on Geographic Names to update federal maps, documents and geographic databases to reflect the new name.
Trump argued that the change recognizes the lake’s importance to the United States, pointing to the location of its deepest waters and America’s role in protecting and maintaining the broader Great Lakes system. The White House also highlighted billions of dollars in U.S. investments aimed at protecting the Great Lakes ecosystem.
The lake sits between New York and the Canadian province of Ontario, making it an international body of water shared by both countries. Trump’s executive order changes its official name within the U.S. federal government but cannot require Canada or international organizations to adopt the Lake America designation.
The move comes just two days after Trump first publicly floated the idea. At the time, he said the United States was giving “serious consideration” to changing the name as relations with Ontario and the Canadian federal government deteriorated.
Trump denied Thursday that the decision was intended to send a specific message to Canada, but quickly returned to his complaints about the country’s treatment of the United States. He accused Canada of taking advantage of America on trade and benefiting from U.S. military protection without contributing enough in return.
The dispute has intensified following the collapse of trade negotiations between Washington and Ottawa. The Trump administration imposed 50% tariffs on roughly $20 billion worth of Canadian products, while Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney responded by announcing retaliatory tariffs on hundreds of American goods.
Trump has also announced plans to impose 50% tariffs on Canadian automobiles, trucks, auto parts and steel beginning Jan. 1, 2027. The president argues that the measures will pressure companies to move manufacturing into the United States while forcing Canada to negotiate what he considers a fairer trade relationship.
Canada has shown no indication that it intends to simply accept Washington’s demands. Carney has promised to retaliate “dollar for dollar,” while Ontario Premier Doug Ford has threatened additional measures involving electricity and critical minerals exported to the United States.
The Lake America order closely follows Trump’s earlier decision to rename the Gulf of Mexico the “Gulf of America” for federal purposes. That change was implemented shortly after Trump returned to the White House and was subsequently adopted by several major American mapping and technology services.
Trump also joked Thursday that the Atlantic and Pacific oceans could potentially be next, though he did not announce any plans to actually rename them. His comments came as he celebrated the Lake America designation and emphasized his administration’s broader effort to recognize American history and economic power through federal geographic naming.
The executive order requires the Geographic Names Information System to be updated within 30 days and instructs federal agencies to begin using Lake America in government maps, contracts, documents and communications.
Whether Canadians ever embrace the new name is another matter entirely. But as far as the Trump administration and the U.S. federal government are concerned, Lake Ontario now has a new official designation: Lake America.