President Trump floated renaming Lake Ontario as “Lake America” in a Truth Social post Tuesday, escalating his trade war with Canada.
Trump, 78, wrote that the United States is “giving serious consideration” to the name change because “we don’t expect to doing much business with Ontario any longer.” The threat came the same day he denied reports that his administration had demanded Quebec abandon French for English during failed trade talks last week.
The Lake Ontario proposal mirrors an executive order Trump signed on his first day back in office last year, rechristening the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America. That move, which he frequently boasted about during his first year, was part of a broader pattern of using geographic renaming as political messaging.
The latest salvo lands amid a bruising tariff battle with America’s northern neighbor. Talks broke down last week, prompting Trump to impose a steep 50% tariff on a range of Canadian goods including beer, cheese, and electronics. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has vowed to retaliate in kind.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford, who has long been a hardliner on trade, teased plans to make the US feel economic pain. Ford vowed to the outlet that “everything is on the table” if the trade spat worsens, including cutting off electricity and critical minerals from Ontario.
“We power 1.5 million homes and businesses,” the premier said. “Everything’s on the table. I’ll do whatever it takes.”
One of the issues Carney claimed caused the breakdown in talks at the 11th hour last week was purported demands that Canada make changes, demanding Quebec use English instead of French. Trump denied that on Monday.
“I would never interfere with Canadians speaking French!” Trump insisted on Truth Social. “In fact, I have never even thought of doing such a stupid thing. This lie was made up by a weak and ineffective Prime Minister in an attempt to gain political support, which he has totally lost, from the people of Quebec.”
“I love French Canadians!” he added.
In the viral moment that launched this latest phase of the dispute, Trump had already made the Gulf of America renaming a signature move of his second term, using it repeatedly as a talking point about American sovereignty. The Lake Ontario threat extends that playbook to freshwater borders, targeting a body of water that touches eight US states and the Canadian province of Ontario. The lake, one of the five Great Lakes, serves as a critical shipping route and water source for millions on both sides of the border.
Trump’s social media post did not specify a timeline for the potential renaming or whether it would require congressional or international approval.