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President Trump on Thursday signed an executive order to officially rename Lake Ontario to Lake America.

The Details: Trump directed the Interior Department to update the lake's name, however it only requires federal entities to recognize the change, according to The New York Times (Lean Left bias). The order called Lake Ontario a "tremendous asset" to the US due to its shipping and recreational benefits.

For Context: Over the weekend, the US announced it was imposing a 50% tariff of $20 billion worth of Canadian goods, while Canada responded by imposing $20 billion worth of retaliatory tariffs on American goods. Lake Ontario was originally named from an Iroquoian word, Ontarí'io, which means "great lake" or "lake of shining waters."

Response from Canada: The Times quoted Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney saying, "We know that America is changing…Canadians also know that naming reality means calling it Lake Ontario — then, now and always." Blaze Media (Right) quoted Ontario Premier Doug Ford saying, "He can kiss my a** as far as I'm concerned. We need to throw everything and the kitchen sink at him. He's arrogant, he's cocky."

How the Media Covered It: Outlets across the political spectrum contextualized the change within the ongoing tariff dispute between the US and Canada. Outlets on the left generally provided more analysis on what this move could mean for future trade talks.

Relations With Canada: Fox News (Right) and The Times included Trump's accusations that Canada "has been ripping [the US] off for a long time on trade." Fox cited Trump's frustration that Canada wants to "be treated like a state" and noted that "Trump [has] previously used geographic names to make political statements." The Times wrote that Canada is also part of NATO and is "also one of the United States' closest intelligence partners."

Pointing Fingers: Whereas Fox primarily focused on Trump's arguments that trade talks were failing due to what he described as Canada's unfair trade practices, NPR (Lean Left) characterized the change as Trump's retaliation for the failed talks. NPR said the new tariffs "are almost certain to raise the cost of goods for Americans" and mentioned criticism from Republican lawmakers. The Hill (Center) also shared a response from Vermont's Republican Gov. Phill Scott who called the move "petty and disappointing" and said that "We should be at the negotiating table, finding a path forward that strengthens both the U.S. and Canadian economies."

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