Donald Trump “changed” the name of Lake Ontario in a social media jab at Canada during a heated trade dispute.
In a video shared on the president’s TikTok account on Wednesday night, Trump shows a printed map of Lake Ontario while sitting in the Oval Office.
“So this is Lake Ontario, in Canada and in the United States,” Trump says in the clip.
“But we’re gonna make a little change.We’re gonna call it something different than Lake Ontario.We’re gonna call it Lake America.And all it takes is a good pen and some intelligence.”
Trump then takes up a black pen, crosses out Lake Ontario, and writes “Lake America.”
“So Lake Ontario, that’s gone.
Lake America.So now we have a lake, and now we have a gulf, because we have the Gulf of America.Now we have Lake America, without the ‘of.’ Thank you very much, everybody.Enjoy Lake America.”
The video is the latest in a string of confrontations in the ongoing trade war with Canada that started over the weekend.
The “Lake America” idea first came up on Tuesday, when Trump posted on his Truth Social account saying he was seriously thinking about renaming the lake.
“The United States is giving serious consideration to changing the name of Lake Ontario to Lake America in that we don’t expect to doing [sic] much business with Ontario any longer,” Trump wrote.
“Thank you for your attention to this matter!”
Whether it’s serious or not, the comments have upset both Canada and Americans.
During his second term, Trump has been very critical of Canada, even suggesting making it the 51st state.
He has also complained about wildfire smoke coming from Canada into the U.S.and has had disagreements with officials over the opening of the Gordie Howe International Bridge, which connects Detroit, Michigan, with Windsor, Ontario.
Earlier this week, Trump accused Canada of “ripping off” the U.S., saying, “WE DON’T NEED CANADA, THEY NEED US!” while outlining his plans for tariffs, which Ottawa has promised to match dollar for dollar.
About the Author
