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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
Comment
Arwa Mahdawi

The rebranding of ‘Lake America’ is Trump’s desperate attempt to distract us

map of the great lakes in the oval office that notes 'lake america'
‘As well as being a distraction, this pathetic maneuver is supposed to be a middle finger to Canada.’ Photograph: Al Drago/Pool/Al Drago - Pool/CNP/Shutterstock

Don’t mention the war! Or the economy, for that matter. Or the Epstein files. Or Natalie Harp. Or “affordability”, which, as Donald Trump recently said at a rally, is a word that was “never used” by the media before he took office. Best not to talk about anything that affects ordinary people or embarrasses the president, really. Instead, let’s all rejoice in Trump’s latest triumph: renaming Lake Ontario, which is shared by Canada and the US, as Lake America.

On Thursday, Trump signed an executive order directing federal agencies to America-fy the lake’s name on US maps and documents, which is an excellent use of time and resources. I suppose we can at least be thankful that the president, who is trying to slap his own name on everything from airports to the Kennedy Center, didn’t decree that the body of water be called Lake Trump.

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