New York Governor Kathy Hochul Responds to Trump's Lake Renaming Proposal

<p>New York Governor Kathy Hochul on Thursday responded to President Donald Trump's executive order to rename Lake Ontario to "Lake America" amid ongoing trade tensions with Canada, stating that New York will continue to use the original name.</p><p>"New York won’t be calling it that," Hochul, a Democrat, wrote on X.</p><p>Trump's order directs the Interior Department and the Board on Geographic Names to update federal records to reflect the new name.</p><p>However, Canada and international bodies are not obligated to adopt the new name.</p><p>Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney stated, "The name Lake Ontario comes from the Wendat word Ontari’io, which, appropriately, means 'the lake is beautiful, the lake is big.' The name is more than 400 years old, predating both the Confederation of Canada and the Declaration of Independence of the United States of America."</p><p>He added, "We know that America is changing. Their trading relationships, their foreign policies, their national monuments, their hydronyms. Canadians also know that naming reality means calling it Lake Ontario — then, now and always."</p><p>U.S. states are not bound by the order and can continue using "Lake Ontario" on state maps, highway signs, and tourism materials. Hochul, Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers, and Vermont Governor Phil Scott were among state leaders who criticized or mocked the move.</p><p>Evers, a Democrat, wrote on X, "And I just renamed Lake Michigan Lake Wisconsin. See, I can sign napkins that say things, too," alongside a video of himself writing "Lake Wisconsin" on a McDonald’s paper napkin.</p><p>Scott, a Republican, described Trump's renaming action as "petty and disappointing," stating, "We should be at the negotiating table, finding a path forward that strengthens both the U.S. and Canadian economies. Further escalating tensions does nothing to help American or Canadian families and businesses."</p><p>The name Lake Ontario is also commonly traced to an Indigenous word translated as "lake of shining waters," and includes around 5.6 million Americans and Canadians in its watershed, according to the Center for Great Lakes Literacy. The lake borders Canada's Ontario province and New York, connecting the Great Lakes to the Atlantic Ocean through the St. Lawrence Seaway.</p><p>Hochul has previously criticized Trump for the trade war with Canada, stating that the president is "treating our allies as enemies" and that "American families continue to suffer because of it."</p><p>New York is among many states expected to be impacted by the trade war with Canada. U.S. goods and services traded with Canada totaled an estimated $872.3 billion last year, according to U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer's office.</p><p>Carney noted that the Canadian government would impose retaliatory tariffs on the U.S. beginning September 8 in response to the Trump administration’s new 50% tariffs on about $20 billion worth of Canadian goods, which took effect earlier this month.</p><p>The prime minister stated that Canada "will match Washington's new tariffs dollar for dollar in order to protect Canadian workers, farmers, families, and businesses."</p>