Trump Threatens to Rename Lake Ontario as Canada Hits Back With 50% Tariffs
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Aug 25
Trump Threatens to Rename Lake Ontario as Canada Hits Back With 50% Tariffs
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Aug 25
Summary
Trump said Tuesday the U.S. was giving “serious consideration” to renaming Lake Ontario “Lake America,” tying the threat to a worsening trade fight and saying Washington may do little business with Ontario.
50% retaliatory tariffs announced by Prime Minister Mark Carney on hundreds of U.S. products followed Trump’s threat of new duties on steel, cars, trucks and parts next year after bilateral talks collapsed over the weekend.
$20 billion in tariffs on some goods took effect Saturday after Canada rejected what Trump had described last week as a deal to avert his planned 50% tariffs on a range of Canadian imports.
Doug Ford, Ontario’s premier, had pushed Ottawa to resist the U.S. offer, arguing it hurt Canadian auto and steel makers and opposing a demand to restore sales of U.S.-made alcohol.
Lake Ontario’s name predates both countries and is believed to come from an Indigenous term, making the threat the latest symbolic provocation after Trump’s earlier Gulf of Mexico renaming order.