So, the President sent this gem out on his privately owned, for-profit social media platform last evening:
It was accompanied by this clever video snippet:
And this map appeared on the official White House Xitter account:
Given his sharp sense of humor, this could well be a joke. But the decidedly-not-lamestream press seems not to think so.
- Fox News: “After ‘Lake America,’ Trump suggests a new name for the state of New Mexico“
- New York Post: “Trump posts map that renames New Mexico ‘New America’“
- One America News: “‘New America’: Trump teases renaming New Mexico amidst rebranding saga“
The most robust reporting, quite naturally, comes from Newsmax (“Trump Floats ‘New America’ Name for New Mexico“), which provides this useful context:
Neither Trump nor the White House indicated whether the post represented a formal proposal to change the state’s name.
The post was one of 34 Trump made in less than an hour Sunday. Others included altered images depicting Trump as wrestler Hulk Hogan and showing Iran’s borders reshaped into an outline resembling the president’s head, the New York Post reported.
Trump previously ordered the federal government to use “Gulf of America” in place of Gulf of Mexico and last month directed the government to use “Lake America” for Lake Ontario.
Unlike those geographic features, however, a president cannot unilaterally change a state’s name, and the White House has announced no formal effort to rename New Mexico.
So, there’s that.
Over at the aptly named American Thinker, Brian C. Joondeph (“What’s in a Name – Trump Style: After years of insisting that names are fluid, the left suddenly discovers tradition when Trump picks the name.“) owns the libtards.
These name changes will be insignificant footnotes in world history, unlike, say, the Louisiana Purchase or America’s purchase of Alaska from Russia.
Yet Democrats and others on the left are acting as if America invaded and conquered Canada.
The New York Times solemnly bemoaned, “Lake Ontario didn’t ask for this.” The Washington Post warned, “Trump’s push to rename Lake Ontario raises a troubling question.”
Such angst.
First of all, lakes don’t talk and don’t pick their names. Or their genders.
Back in 2015, when President Obama renamed Mount McKinley to Denali, all the New York Times had to say was, “Mount McKinley to be renamed Denali.”
Did Mount McKinley ask for this? The Gray Lady was mum on that question.
The Washington Post had no “troubling question” in 2015, simply and refreshingly reporting the news: “Obama will rename the highest U.S. peak, dropping McKinley for Denali.” Troubling questions died in darkness.
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis recommended that Colorado’s Mount Evans be renamed Mount Blue Sky because territorial governor John Evans played a role in events surrounding the 1864 Sand Creek Massacre.
The Denver neighborhood of Stapleton was renamed Central Park through the efforts of community organizers and activists because former multiple-term Denver Mayor Benjamin Stapleton had once been a member of the Ku Klux Klan. Yet it took almost a century for activists to be activated.
The Biden administration’s Department of the Interior renamed hundreds of geographic features containing a term it considered derogatory toward Native Americans, writing ‘Sq___’ in its statement. Separately, a congressionally mandated process renamed U.S. military installations that honored Confederate figures.
That included changing Fort Bragg in North Carolina to Fort Liberty because its namesake, Braxton Bragg, was a Confederate general. Trump subsequently employed some rhetorical sleight of hand to restore the name Fort Bragg, this time honoring Private First-Class Roland L. Bragg, a World War II paratrooper who happened to share the Confederate general’s surname.
[…]
Apparently, geographical names are fluid, too — until Donald Trump picks one.
Such situational outrage. When Dastardly Donald does something, it’s unprecedented and catastrophic. When Benevolent Barack, Judicious Justin, or any other enlightened Canadian officials do something similar, it’s thoughtful, culturally sensitive, and progressive.
Sick burn.
