U.S. House Dems Challenge Trump's 'Lake Ontario' Name Change Through Proposed Legislation

CBS Detroit

September 1, 2026

Three U.S. House Democrats are challenging President Trump's executive order renaming Lake Ontario "Lake America."

The Hands Off Our Great Lakes Act, introduced by Michigan Congresswoman Debbie Dingell and New York Congressmen Tim Kennedy and Joe Morelle, would prohibit the federal government from changing any of the five Great Lakes' names and reverse Mr. Trump's order regarding Lake Ontario.

"The Great Lakes are a shared treasure that generations of Americans and Canadians have worked together to protect. Canada is not our enemy. It is our neighbor, our ally, and one of Michigan's most important economic partners. It is a friendship that no stroke of a pen should be able to erase," Dingell said in a statement. "By preventing President Trump from trying to divide us with distracting public relations stunts, maybe then he will turn his attention to his reckless trade war that is raising costs and threatening American workers."

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