# Trump's renaming of gulfs & lakes? Now he's trying states . . **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Tags:** trump\ **Created:** [September 7, 2026, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-renaming-of-gulfs-lakes-now-hes-trying-states/1032878 "2026-09-07T17:24:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2026, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-renaming-of-gulfs-lakes-now-hes-trying-states/1032878/21 "2026-09-07T22:20:03Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > I’m sure that the Orange One has been talked out of it, but to the extent that state names are indexed in the GNIS, he could try, even if it’s unconstitutional. I don’t know how to explain to you that although nobody can stop him from proclaiming whatever he wants, nobody can force anybody else to go along with anything that doesn’t have any legal basis. GNIS is not the system of record for the names of states. It’s a system of record for where to find geographical features, which includes mentioning what state they’re in. So I guess it’s plausible that he could amend it to say that the Grand Canyon is located in Trumpizona, sure. But that doesn’t create any state named Trumpizona, nor rename the state of Arizona, and anyway a silly change like that could be trivially undone by a future administration. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2026, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-renaming-of-gulfs-lakes-now-hes-trying-states/1032878/22 "2026-09-07T22:29:07Z")
> [@HMS\_Irruncible](#): > > GNIS is not the system of record for the names of states. It’s a system of record for where to find geographical features, which includes mentioning what state they’re in. I acknowledge that you’re correct. Which is possibly why every single state is not currently named after the Orange Narcissist. But the names of national and international landmarks and bodies of water are all in peril until a sane administration sets them all back again. ---
**Author:** ![UDS1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/e47774/32.png) [@UDS1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UDS1)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2026, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-renaming-of-gulfs-lakes-now-hes-trying-states/1032878/23 "2026-09-08T01:11:46Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > But the names of national and international landmarks and bodies of water are all in peril until a sane administration sets them all back again. No. All that’s in peril is the way they are referred to the GNIS. The name of a geographical feature is a matter of fact. What people call it, that’s its name. That’s what the word “name” means. Lake Ontario is still named “Lake Ontario” because everybody in the world outside a few US government officials and a few drivelling sycophants calls it “Lake Ontario”. Trump cannot change this by issuing a decree pronouncing that it is now called “Lake America”; the only way he can change this is by persuading people in general actually to call it “Lake America”. Good luck with that. The name of a political structure such as a state is slightly different. Lake Ontario has a physical reality which persists even if there is nobody around to see it, much less name it. But a state only exists because humans agree, in a formal kind of way, to create it. A state is created by law in a way that a lake is not, and it’s highly arguable that one of the characteristics of the state, its name, is a product of that process. In the context of the US you can argue abour whether a state is created by the federal power, or whether its created by its people. And you could probably argue that the answer may be different for different states. And from there you can have fascinating arguments about whether the state adopts its own name, and can change it, or Congress confers a name on it, and can change it. But I don’t see any argument that the _President_ can change the name of a state; the President didn’t create the state, or name it, in the first place. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2026, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-renaming-of-gulfs-lakes-now-hes-trying-states/1032878/24 "2026-09-08T02:17:34Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > Take it up with the bot. Also, the real Virginia. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2026, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-renaming-of-gulfs-lakes-now-hes-trying-states/1032878/25 "2026-09-08T03:27:50Z")
> [@HMS\_Irruncible](#): > > The acts that authorized New Mexico to become a state aren’t “valid until repealed” types of laws, they are completed facts, and the Constitution does Maybe they should be. I can think of a few (red) states that the USA would be better off without. > [@HMS\_Irruncible](#): > > don’t know how to explain to you that although nobody can stop him from proclaiming whatever he wants, nobody can force anybody else to go along with anything that doesn’t have any legal basis. You could point to the multiple times that I have forbidden the electorate to EVER elevate a FUCKING Republican to the presidency. ---
**Author:** ![Ancient\_Nerd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed655f/32.png) [@Ancient\_Nerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ancient_Nerd)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2026, 6:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-renaming-of-gulfs-lakes-now-hes-trying-states/1032878/26 "2026-09-08T06:07:52Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > Maybe they should be. I can think of a few (red) states that the USA would be better off without. What if we gave Texas back to Mexico? ---
**Author:** ![Mk\_VII](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Mk\_VII](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mk_VII)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2026, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-renaming-of-gulfs-lakes-now-hes-trying-states/1032878/27 "2026-09-08T12:33:27Z")
There is a not-small number of people and companies who refuse to ship to New Mexico as they believe it’s 'abroad '. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2026, 12:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-renaming-of-gulfs-lakes-now-hes-trying-states/1032878/28 "2026-09-08T12:51:28Z")
> [@Sherrerd](#): > > But how can there be a “New America” IN America? Wasn’t New Mexico IN Mexico until the Mexican American War? ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2026, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-renaming-of-gulfs-lakes-now-hes-trying-states/1032878/29 "2026-09-08T13:11:18Z")
Ironically, New Mexico (Nuevo México) predates “old Mexico” - the country- by about 250 years. Before independence, Mexico was called New Spain. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2026, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-renaming-of-gulfs-lakes-now-hes-trying-states/1032878/30 "2026-09-08T13:21:05Z")
> [@whitetho](#): > > Trivia: In 2020, “Rhode Island and Providence Plantations” passed a referendum to shorten its name to just “Rhode Island Right. The reserved sovereign powers of the individual state includes setting up and modifying their own corporate name. Though since in this case it just went to officialize the common-everyday-usage (plus its name having preexisted the federation) it was no biggie. ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2026, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-renaming-of-gulfs-lakes-now-hes-trying-states/1032878/31 "2026-09-08T13:30:52Z")
Trump isn’t _actually_ renaming anything. He spouts a dumb meme on social media, and his cultists and assorted corporate suck-ups hop on board. But it’s all imaginary and not tangible. Look at the Kennedy Center- he’s been feverishly trying to tie his name to that institution, and so far all he’s accomplished is to shut the place down. ---
**Author:** ![robby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robby/32/11048_2.png) [@robby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robby)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2026, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-renaming-of-gulfs-lakes-now-hes-trying-states/1032878/32 "2026-09-08T14:08:33Z")
> [@whitetho](#): > > Trivia: In 2020, “Rhode Island and Providence Plantations” passed a referendum to shorten its name to just “Rhode Island”. Nitpick: the official name of the state changed from the “ **State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations** ” to the “ **State of Rhode Island** ”. I work with state and municipal governments all the time. The “State of…” or “Commonwealth of…” or “City of…” is part of the legal name. Here in Connecticut, there is a “City of Groton” and a “Town of Groton.” (Counterintuitively, the jurisdiction of the city is surrounded by that of the town, because the town is a sub-county division, what some other states call “townships.”) Anyway, the “City of Groton” and “Town of Groton” are two different legal entities. So if you are talking about a geographical area, you can certainly refer to Connecticut or Rhode Island, but if you are talking about official names, then you have to add the “State of…”, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2026, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-renaming-of-gulfs-lakes-now-hes-trying-states/1032878/33 "2026-09-08T14:13:34Z")
I lived in New York State for a while and similarly there were villages and towns with the same name, like the village of Ossining in the town of Ossining. ---
**Author:** ![Folacin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folacin/32/3195_2.png) [@Folacin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folacin)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2026, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-renaming-of-gulfs-lakes-now-hes-trying-states/1032878/34 "2026-09-08T16:00:48Z")
> [@Mk\_VII](#): > > There is a not-small number of people and companies who refuse to ship to New Mexico as they believe it’s 'abroad '. There is a reason their license plate says “New Mexico, USA” ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2026, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-renaming-of-gulfs-lakes-now-hes-trying-states/1032878/35 "2026-09-08T23:31:21Z")
Also why New Mexico Magazine has been running a feature called “One of Our Fifty is Missing” for decades. [One of Our 50 Is Missing: August 2026 | New Mexico Magazine](https://www.newmexicomagazine.org/blog/post/one-of-our-50-is-missing-august-2026/) ---
**Author:** ![Tripler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripler/32/21807_2.png) [@Tripler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tripler)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2026, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-renaming-of-gulfs-lakes-now-hes-trying-states/1032878/36 "2026-09-09T12:24:00Z")
> [@HMS\_Irruncible](#): > > The acts that authorized New Mexico to become a state aren’t “valid until repealed” types of laws, they are completed facts, and the Constitution doesn’t provide any mechanism for undoing those. That’s why it would take an amendment. If the federal government can simply undo facts of admission without a Constitutional amendment, then the 10th Amendment has no real meaning. This argument confused me. Granted, I’m not a lawyer, but I don’t understand a distinction between “completed fact” laws & “valid until repealed” laws. Aren’t _ **all** _ laws valid until repealed? Hell, even the [18th Amendment](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eighteenth_Amendment_to_the_United_States_Constitution) (Prohibition) was repealed, but _that_ specifically took the [21st Amendment](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twenty-first_Amendment_to_the_United_States_Constitution) to repeal because of the form of the “Act” in the first place (an Amendment). My point is that _any_ law can be repealed with a similar structure/level law . . . But then I came across [this thread](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-a-us-state-change-its-name/501043) which I think clarified things. . . I believe your point is that each state, during its enablement & organization period \*whatever that looks like), includes a step where the _inhabitants_ choose to name themselves, as is their right (a States right). The Feds coming in and renaming New Jersey to “East Palookuhstan” is an infringement on the New Jersey’s inherent right to be called by what _it_ wants to, which is where you bring in the 10th Amendment point . . . Do I have that correct? Tripler Again, IANAL. I merely play one on TV. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2026, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-renaming-of-gulfs-lakes-now-hes-trying-states/1032878/37 "2026-09-09T14:21:48Z")
The new season of _South Park_ will have a new name… _Parker and Stone made the announcement on social media on Tuesday, writing,_ “ **Inspired by the bravery and patriotism of Apple and Google, we are changing the name of South Park to SOUTH AMERICA. We especially want to thank our parent company Paramount — a Skydance Capitulation.”** -From my LA Times app ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2026, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-renaming-of-gulfs-lakes-now-hes-trying-states/1032878/38 "2026-09-09T14:31:51Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Sure, we could laugh it off, _and they would take it as a serious lack of opposition to the idea._ > Not taking him seriously is a big part of the problem-“He can’t do that/he wouldn’t do that” is a major part of the problem. To my way of thinking regarding “renaming” geographical entities … he actually CAN’T do that and in fact HASN’T done that. All he can do via executive order is force agencies that report to him to use the names on public-facing documentation (to include websites). A few sycophantic private concerns will rename the same items on their mapping websites. An oil company or two will make a “Gulf of America!” Super Bowl commercial. Then that’s the end of that. 29 months hence, everything Trump “renamed” goes immediately back to its actual name. Meanwhile, all the people on the ground who actually interact with these geographic entities, plus local media, plus pretty much everyone else, have been keeping to the pre-Trump names all along. An Executive Order is not a magic wand. It’s nothing if not eminently ephemeral. Upshot: Dude didn’t rename squat. ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2026, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-renaming-of-gulfs-lakes-now-hes-trying-states/1032878/39 "2026-09-09T14:33:07Z")
> [@Tripler](#): > > Granted, I’m not a lawyer, but I don’t understand a distinction between “completed fact” laws & “valid until repealed” laws. Aren’t _ **all** _ laws valid until repealed? Hell, even the [18th Amendment](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eighteenth_Amendment_to_the_United_States_Constitution) (Prohibition) was repealed, but _that_ specifically took the [21st Amendment](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twenty-first_Amendment_to_the_United_States_Constitution) to repeal because of the form of the “Act” in the first place (an Amendment). My point is that _any_ law can be repealed with a similar structure/level law . . . When a state is admitted to the union, it creates a constitutional entity, and this can only be undone by a constitutional amendment. i.e. it gets 2 Senators, all of the 10th Amendment modifications, Which you did mention, so maybe I was unclear on that point. More broadly, the law recognizes acts that are ongoing vs ones that are exhausted. i.e. a law that grants state land to some party generally be simply repealed, it has to be found unconstitutional, or the constitution has to be amended to make it constitutional. Compared to a statute that governs an ongoing policy… we collect tax a certain way, this is ongoing policy, we can change how it’s executed. And there’s also this: > [@Tripler](#): > > The Feds coming in and renaming New Jersey to “East Palookuhstan” is an infringement on the New Jersey’s inherent right to be called by what _it_ wants to, which is where you bring in the 10th Amendment point While I don’t think that’s as strong of an argument as the fact that renaming a state would be unconstitutional vis-a-vis altering the facts of submission, I think it’s true that a state’s right to name itself is a 10th-amendment right (i.e. when the federal government admitted New Mexico, it used that name and didn’t claim any right to name it, so that right has to remain with the state unless SCOTUS finds otherwise). Of course there’s also the plain fact that if a corrupt Congress and corrupt President and a corrupt SCOTUS decide that renaming states is Constitutional, then it is so. But those are the legal hurdles that would have to be annihilated. ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2026, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-renaming-of-gulfs-lakes-now-hes-trying-states/1032878/40 "2026-09-09T14:34:13Z")
> [@BlankSlate](#): > > I’m not sure we’ll escape this maladministration without Rushmore becoming Mt. Trump. Let him. It’s theater, no matter what the Department of the Interior has to write on their website and on brochures for the next 29 months. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-renaming-of-gulfs-lakes-now-hes-trying-states/1032878.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-renaming-of-gulfs-lakes-now-hes-trying-states/1032878.md?page=3)