Trump’s Controversial Executive Order

President Trump issued an Executive Order on Thursday titled “Honoring the American History of the Great Lakes and Renaming Lake Ontario as Lake America.” He claims that because “the deepest parts of the Lake’s waters” are “within United States territory” and “the United States claims most of the Lake’s volume,” he can unilaterally change the name. However, approximately 55% of Lake Ontario’s surface area is in Canada, with the official international boundary running through the middle.

Public Opinion and Legal Grounds

According to a YouGov poll, only 19% of Americans support Trump’s decision, which is seen as an unnecessary slight to Canada. While public backlash is strong, this executive order positions Trump on relatively legitimate legal footing. The same poll shows Trump’s overall approval rating at 36%. Public disapproval seems stronger for his decision to rename Lake Ontario than for other actions, such as the 18 U.S. service members killed and 756 wounded in Trump’s Iran war, or the 66,000 people currently in immigration detention camps, over 70% of whom lack criminal convictions.

Trump’s actions also include a rise in inflation due to ongoing tariffs, pay-to-play engagements with wealthy entities, lowering FBI recruitment standards, appearing in Epstein files, and accumulating wealth since retaking office. Compared to these issues, renaming Lake Ontario seems inconsequential.

Trump cites a federal law allowing the Secretary of the Interior, with the Board on Geographic Names, to provide uniform geographic nomenclature. Decisions must serve federal interests and consider agency concerns.

Legal Challenges

Michael Dorf argues that an inquiry is needed to determine if renaming benefits federal interests, making the order potentially unlawful without it. Trump and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum bypassed these criteria with the previous renaming of the Gulf of Mexico. In 2024, a Supreme Court ruling allowed presidents unlimited legal immunity for crimes committed using office powers, stripping Congress of agency independence protection.

Burgum faces a civil lawsuit threat for failing procedural compliance, but its impact is minimal. Seneca Nation President J. Conrad Seneca argues against Trump’s move, citing the 1794 Treaty of Canandaigua with the Haudenosaunee Confederacy. Yet Trump has bypassed constitutional and international law in other actions, such as attacking Iran, kidnapping Venezuela’s president, and imposing tariffs despite Congress’s authority.

The Larger Picture

Over 100 international law experts suggest Trump has committed war crimes. Complaints about an historic treaty seem mild in comparison. Kimberly Wehle, a fellow at the Netherlands Institute for Advanced Study and author, warns that America’s rule of law is eroding. She suggests the naming controversy could awaken the public, with Canadian support.

Kimberly Wehle is the author of numerous works on constitutional understanding and civic engagement. Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.