Ontario’s Doug Ford prods Trump with sign rejecting ‘Lake America’ name

Ontario Premier Doug Ford has unveiled a caller – and precise bluish – effect to United States President Donald Trump’s arguable bid renaming Lake Ontario arsenic “Lake America”.

On Saturday, Ford recorded a video of himself on the lake’s enactment adjacent Hamilton, Ontario, wherever helium revealed a baby-blue, billboard-sized motion that reads “Lake Ontario” successful ample achromatic letters.

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Underneath, a subheading underscores Ford’s connection astir the name: “Now and Always.” The connection is besides repeated successful French, Canada’s 2nd authoritative language.

Ford, who has made a wont of needling the US president, explained that the motion was erected to reaffirm the Great Lake’s sanction “in lawsuit President Trump — oregon anyone other — forgets”.

“Long earlier President Trump, this water was called Lake Ontario,” Ford said successful his societal media video. “And agelong aft President Trump is gone, it volition inactive beryllium called Lake Ontario.”

The White House did not respond to Al Jazeera’s petition for comment.

With Canada and the US embroiled successful a spiralling commercialized war, Trump signed an enforcement order connected Thursday that changed however the US national authorities would notation to the assemblage of water.

The order, however, drew pushback from allies and critics alike. Vermont Governor Phil Scott, a chap Republican, called the determination “petty and disappointing”, and respective politicians urged Trump to instrumentality to the negotiating table, alternatively than antagonise Canada, a longtime ally.

Canada is ranked arsenic 1 of the US’s apical 2 trading partners, and arsenic of 2024, it is the largest destination for US exports.

The commercialized tensions, however, person led to a fashionable backlash successful Canada, with boycotts of US goods and bans successful respective provinces against US liquor.

Ford, a right-wing populist, has emerged arsenic a vocal proponent of Canadian retaliatory actions. Since Trump took bureau for a 2nd word successful 2025, helium has called for Canada to cede its sovereignty and go a US state, and has issued respective waves of tariffs against the bluish country.

Ford’s “Lake Ontario” motion marks the premier’s latest salvo successful his ongoing feud with Trump.

Earlier this week, Ford escalated his attacks against Trump aft trade negotiations betwixt the 2 countries fell apart, resulting successful US tariffs of 50 percent connected $20bn worthy of Canadian goods.

“He tin buss my a** arsenic acold arsenic I’m concerned. We’re going to spell astatine him afloat steam,” Ford said astir Trump during a Monday interrogation connected a Toronto vigor show.

Trump fired back connected his Truth Social level by mocking Ford arsenic “less charismatic, intelligent, and wide unimpressive” compared with his precocious brother, the precocious Toronto Mayor Rob Ford.

“Someone should get these clowns to ‘fall successful line’ or, the consequences for Canada volition beryllium acold WORSE,” Trump added.

Saturday’s billboard is not the archetypal stunt Ford has undertaken to basal up against Trump, either. Some of those actions person had planetary consequences.

Last year, Ford’s authorities spent $75m connected an anti-tariff advertisement featuring the dependable of erstwhile US President Ronald Reagan, which aired successful the US.

“Over the agelong run, specified commercialized barriers wounded each American idiosyncratic and consumer,” Reagan tin beryllium heard saying successful the message.

The US and Canada were successful the midst of commercialized negotiations astatine the time, and Trump cancelled the talks successful protestation against the advertisement. Some members of the Trump medication compared the advertizing run with predetermination interference, arsenic the advertisements aired earlier 2025’s off-year races.

Ford yet pulled the advertisement from the airwaves successful October, saying helium had achieved his extremity “to initiate a conversation” astir “the interaction of tariffs connected workers and businesses”.

Since 2018, Ford has led Ontario arsenic its provincial caput of government. The state is considered the centre of Canada’s automotive manufacturing industry, and its factories are tightly integrated with US car manufacturers crossed the border.

A salient blimpish and longtime person successful Toronto, Ford formerly drew comparisons with Trump. His introduction into provincial authorities coincided with Trump’s archetypal word arsenic president.

Early on, immoderate of Ford’s supporters rallied astir the tagline “Make Ontario Great Again”, a play connected Trump’s “Make America Great Again” run slogan. The phrase, successful turn, had been popularised during Reagan’s 1980 tally for president.

But Ford has rejected immoderate comparisons with the US president, saying helium and his household were progressive successful authorities agelong earlier Trump.