US Congress Democrat seeks to reverse Trump's renaming of Lake Ontario

Democratic Congresswoman Debbie Dingell has said she is preparing legislation to reverse President Donald Trump's executive order renaming Lake Ontario as "Lake America." She revealed the plan in an interview with Politico.

The one-page bill, which Dingell intends to introduce on Monday, is titled the "Act to Prevent Encroachment on Our Great Lakes." She said people underestimate how closely intertwined the United States and Canada are, calling the idea of renaming Lake Ontario absurd.

Letter to Trump and signatures

Dingell said she is working with Democratic Party leaders on a response to Trump's decision to impose tariffs against Canada. Separately, she is collecting signatures from colleagues for a letter calling on the administration to change its diplomatic approach toward Canada, described as the United States' closest ally, and to recognize the importance of the bilateral relationship. She said around 100 of her fellow House Democrats have already signed on.

The congresswoman also recalled growing up in a small town called St. Clair, where looking out her bedroom window as a child, she saw not America but Canada, since the two countries lie so close together there.

Background

On August 27, Trump signed an order renaming Lake Ontario as "Lake America" amid a trade war with Canada, while also saying he was considering renaming two oceans. Canada's prime minister noted that the name Ontario predates the independence of both countries by far, and that for Canadians the lake will always remain Lake Ontario.