President Donald Trump signed an executive order renaming the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America, but why did he make that move?
His executive order titled “Restoring Names That Honor American Greatness” also renamed Denali, North America’s tallest peak, to Mount McKinley, and was one of the first actions he took upon returning to the Oval Office early in his presidency.
The name change has been observed by Google and several other companies, but has been met with resistance by several other countries, including Mexico and the United Kingdom.
So why did Trump order the change?
According to the original executive order signed in late January, Trump said that the Gulf plays a “pivotal role” in the security and economic prosperity of the United States, and should therefore be named after the U.S.
“The Gulf will continue to play a pivotal role in shaping America’s future and the global economy, and in recognition of this flourishing economic resource and its critical importance to our Nation’s economy and its people, I am directing that it officially be renamed the Gulf of America,” his order said.
Trump would later declare Sunday, Feb. 9 as “Gulf of America Day,” and said that he renamed the body of water to “restore American pride” during the early days of his administration.
“As my Administration restores American pride in the history of American greatness, it is fitting and appropriate for our great Nation to come together and commemorate this momentous occasion and the renaming of the Gulf of America,” Trump said.
The Interior Department was tasked with renaming the body of water on all official government documents and websites.
“These changes reaffirm the Nation’s commitment to preserving the extraordinary heritage of the United States and ensuring that future generations of Americans celebrate the legacy of its heroes and historic assets,” the department said.
Since the United States has territorial rights over wide swaths of the Gulf, it is able to rename the territorial waters on an official basis. When Google users use the company’s Maps tool, they will see “Gulf of America” if they are doing those searches within the United States.
Since other countries, including Mexico, have not recognized that change, the name of the waterway is still “Gulf of Mexico” when using apps in those countries.
Mexico has territorial rights on a wide swath of the Gulf as well, which covers the country’s eastern and southeastern states.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo has said Mexico will not recognize the name change, and has written a letter to Google asking the company to rename the body of water ‘América Mexicana’ instead of “Gulf of America,” according to the Daily Beast.
Cuba also has territorial rights to parts of the Gulf on its west coast. That nation has not said whether or not they would observe a new name for the waterway.