Ontario Premier Ford mocks Trump's 'Lake America' order with giant sign

Ontario Premier Doug Ford responded Saturday to President Donald Trump's executive order renaming Lake Ontario to "Lake America" by unveiling a billboard-sized sign on the Canadian shoreline bearing the message: "Lake Ontario. Now and Always."

Wearing a Team Canada soccer jersey, Ford unveiled the sign near Grimsby, Ontario, and posed for photographs. The 24-by-12-foot (7.3-by-3.6 meter) sign stands on 6-foot (1.8-meter) legs, placing its top approximately 18 feet (5.5 meters) above the ground — roughly two stories high. The message is also displayed in French.

Defiance Amid Rising Tensions

The sign represents the latest act of defiance after Trump signed an executive order directing U.S. federal agencies to refer to Lake Ontario as "Lake America." Following months of tariffs, threats to make Canada the 51st U.S. state, and personal attacks on Canadian leaders, the move has been met largely with ridicule across Canada.

Ford stated that Trump was attempting to rename the lake because Ontario and Canada were "standing up for ourselves," and argued the name would outlast the president.

"Long after President Trump is gone, it will still be called Lake Ontario," Ford said in a video posted on social media.

Political and Historical Reactions

Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew compared Trump to an aging rock band trying to revive an old hit:

"You know when a rock band is really over the hill and you see them like in a casino playing some song from like 50 years ago. I think that's the part of Donald Trump's presidency we're at now. Like he thought they had a real hit, a real golden oldie, with the Gulf of Mexico... And he's trying to bring back that, and he's trying to play the hits for his base. But I think everybody here thinks it's a little sad and it's not his best work."

Kinew was referring to Trump's executive order renaming the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America.

Canadian historian Robert Bothwell was even more scathing:

"The greatest country on earth takes this moron seriously?"

However, Bothwell noted the dispute carried deeper implications, arguing Trump's broader aim was "to subordinate Canada and at best make it a colony, at worst absorb it into the United States."

Nelson Wiseman, professor emeritus at the University of Toronto, said Trump "would like Canada to act like a vassal state, but it refuses to do so. That irritates him."

Worsening Trade Relations

The dispute unfolds as relations between the longtime allies deteriorate over trade. Negotiations collapsed last week, with both governments accusing the other of making late demands. Canada has announced retaliatory tariffs set to take effect next month.

Escalating War of Words

Trump's order also came amid an escalating war of words with Ford. In an interview with The Associated Press earlier this week, Ford said Ronald Reagan would be "throwing up" over Trump's tariff policies and "disgusted with President Trump."

Trump fired back by dismissing Ford's comments as "bluster," calling him Prime Minister Mark Carney's "flunky," and mocking him as the "less charismatic, intelligent, and overall unimpressive brother" of the late Toronto Mayor Rob Ford.

Trump continued promoting the new name Saturday, reposting a meme showing Canada geese with Trump-like blond hair firing rifles as they "protected" Lake America.

Trump's Use of Maps

Trump has repeatedly used maps to make political points. A "Gulf of America" map was displayed for a time beside the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office, and Trump has posted images depicting Canada as part of the United States or as the 51st state.

Historical and Indigenous Roots

The name Lake Ontario originates from the Huron Indigenous people's word "oniatarí:io," meaning "lake of shining waters." The Canadian province of Ontario, founded in 1867, took its name from the lake.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney rejected the move, noting the lake's Indigenous roots and that the name predates both Canadian Confederation and the U.S. Declaration of Independence. Trump cannot require Canada to adopt the new name.