Trump's Lake Name Change Called a Distraction From the Iran War

President Donald Trump signed an order to rename Lake Ontario 'Lake America,' and the move quickly sparked anger from both Republicans and Democrats. Critics said the name change was a trick to pull attention away from a bigger story: the United States has now been at war with Iran for six months. The war began on Feb. 28, and Trump had said early on that it would end 'very soon.' But as of Aug. 28, U.S. forces were still fighting, and many lawmakers were demanding answers.

Many political experts said Trump uses eye-catching announcements to change what people are talking about. Larry Sabato, a political science professor at the University of Virginia, said that strategy doesn't always work for long. 'Trump's technique of distraction often works, but a spat with Canada about renaming Lake Ontario isn't big enough to work for long,' he told USA TODAY. He also pointed out that Trump had now completed 40% of his term, and his approval rating might not improve.

The lake rename was not the only unusual priority Trump focused on that week. He also worked on restoring his name to the front of the Kennedy Center and planned a new White House helipad and ballroom. The lake's name change, like the earlier renaming of the Gulf of Mexico to the 'Gulf of America,' is not written into law. Canada's leaders said the rest of the world would simply ignore the new name, calling it 'foolishness' and 'shenanigans.'

Some Republicans pushed back hard against Trump's decision. Vermont Governor Phil Scott, a Republican, called the name change 'petty and disappointing.' GOP Representative Tom Tiffany, who is running for governor in Wisconsin with Trump's support, said at a campaign event that 'the Great Lakes are the Great Lakes and should stay Lake Superior, Lake Michigan, Lake Ontario.' Jeffrey Blehar, writing in the conservative magazine National Review, called the move a 'stupid publicity stunt' and said it was an 'unsuccessful' distraction.

Trump tried to draw attention to differences between his war and the Iraq War under former President George W. Bush. Trump posted images online mocking Bush's famous 'Mission Accomplished' speech from six weeks into the Iraq War in 2003. Trump posted his own image showing Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei — who was killed on the first day of the Iran war — with a sign reading 'Mission Accomplished.' Trump has pointed to the destruction of Iran's nuclear sites and navy as signs of success in the conflict.

However, not everyone agreed the mission was finished. Representative Thomas Massie of Kentucky reminded the public that a law called the War Powers Act requires a president to pull troops out within 90 days unless Congress votes to continue the war. The Trump administration argued that a ceasefire had ended the war, even though fighting later started up again. 'We are past 180 days,' Massie wrote on social media on Aug. 28. 'End the war.'

Democrats were even sharper in their criticism of both the war and the lake rename. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York said the lake change was 'sad and pathetic,' and argued that 18 U.S. service members had died while Iran kept blocking a key waterway and gas prices hit record highs. Representative Mike Quigley of Illinois said that instead of ending the war and lowering prices, Trump renamed a lake. He summed up many people's frustration with a short question on social media: 'Are we great yet?'