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Canada erects giant ‘Lake Ontario’ sign as spat with Trump over name escalates
Confirmed
In a statement explaining why it was acquiescing to Trump’s desired name for Lake Ontario, Google said its practice is to “reflect name changes in official government sources”. The Lake of Ontario’s name change “does not have any impact on Canadian naming conventions or how the rest of the world refers to the lake,” Google said in a statement.
Ford said Trump was trying to rename the lake because Ontario and Canada were “standing up for ourselves”, and he argued the name would outlast the president. The update came two days after Trump signed an executive order directing federal agencies to use the new name for the lake in official documents and records.
“The U.S. Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) has formally changed the name for ‘Lake Ontario’ to ‘Lake America’ in the United States,” Google said. “Long after President Trump is gone, it will still be called Lake Ontario,” Ford said in a video posted on social media.
With talks to resolve the trade dispute stalled, Trump issued an executive order on Thursday directing US agencies that the lake was now Lake America. And it said “those in Canada will continue to see ‘Lake Ontario’” on Google Maps, “and those outside … the US and Canada will see both names.
He published another of himself kicking over a Lake Ontario sign and replacing it with Lake America while he danced in his distinctive to a soundtrack of the Village People hit YMCA, which he has implemented into his public appearances for years.
“You know when, like, a rock band is really over the hill and you see them like in a casino playing some song from like 50 years ago, I think that’s the part of Donald Trump’s presidency we’re at now,” Kinew said. Meanwhile, Manitoba’s premier, Wab Kinew, said Trump’s Lake America provocation was akin to an aging rock band trying to revive an old hit.
He noted that Apple Maps still identifies the body of water as Lake Ontario. In a Saturday blog post , Google explained that U.S. users would see “Lake America” displayed over the Great Lake, which straddles the U.S.-Canada border.
Trump’s order affects the US’s federal Geographic Names Information System (GNIS), “which sets the standard for official US maps”, the tech company said. In an interview with the Associated Press earlier, Ford said the late Ronald Reagan would be “throwing up” over Trump’s tariff policies.
What's confirmed
- With talks to resolve the trade dispute stalled, Trump issued an executive order on Thursday directing US agencies that the lake was now Lake America.
- And it said “those in Canada will continue to see ‘Lake Ontario’” on Google Maps, “and those outside … the US and Canada will see both names.
- “The U.S. Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) has formally changed the name for ‘Lake Ontario’ to ‘Lake America’ in the United States,” Google said.
- The update came two days after Trump signed an executive order directing federal agencies to use the new name for the lake in official documents and records.
What's still developing
- In a statement explaining why it was acquiescing to Trump’s desired name for Lake Ontario, Google said its practice is to “reflect name changes in official government sources”.
- Trump’s order affects the US’s federal Geographic Names Information System (GNIS), “which sets the standard for official US maps”, the tech company said.
- The Lake of Ontario’s name change “does not have any impact on Canadian naming conventions or how the rest of the world refers to the lake,” Google said in a statement.
- He published another of himself kicking over a Lake Ontario sign and replacing it with Lake America while he danced in his distinctive to a soundtrack of the Village People hit YMCA, which he has implemented into his…
- Ford said Trump was trying to rename the lake because Ontario and Canada were “standing up for ourselves”, and he argued the name would outlast the president.
- “Long after President Trump is gone, it will still be called Lake Ontario,” Ford said in a video posted on social media.
- In an interview with the Associated Press earlier, Ford said the late Ronald Reagan would be “throwing up” over Trump’s tariff policies.
- Meanwhile, Manitoba’s premier, Wab Kinew, said Trump’s Lake America provocation was akin to an aging rock band trying to revive an old hit.