Ten Days After Renaming Lake Ontario, Trump Posts a Map With "Mexico" Crossed Out and Calls New Mexico "One of the Great Vote Cheating States of All Time" — the State's Entire Democratic Delegation, Its Governor and Both Nominees to Succeed Her Answer "Oh Hell No," and a Republican Senator Says the New Name Is "Kind of Catchy"
On Sunday, September 6, 2026 — in the middle of a Labor Day weekend posting spree that also included an image of the Moon captioned "THE MOON IS OURS" and a string of AI-generated pictures — President Trump posted a map of New Mexico on Truth Social with the word "Mexico" crossed out in red and "America" written beneath it. The official White House account reposted the image on X. In a follow-up post, Trump wrote that "many people suggested changing the name of New Mexico, one of the great vote cheating states of all time, to NEW AMERICA," calling the name "so much more prestigious and beautiful for the people of that potentially incredible State. Wow, I Love It!!!" The post followed a debunked online hoax claiming Trump had already signed an executive order renaming the state, and came ten days after he did sign an order renaming Lake Ontario "Lake America" during the tariff fight with Canada, and days after he floated and then withdrew renaming the Strait of Hormuz "Trump Strait." A president cannot rename a state by executive action; the White House announced no formal effort to do so. The reaction from New Mexico was immediate and unanimous across the ballot. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham said the name "isn't up for debate — it's been ours since before the United States existed" and that "while the White House wastes time coloring on maps, Nuevo México is busy doing the work." Sen. Martin Heinrich listed "three things I will always call by their actual names: The Gulf of Mexico. Lake Ontario. New Mexico." Sen. Ben Ray Luján said "it's New Mexico, always has been and always will be." Rep. Melanie Stansbury opened her post with "Oh hell no!" and Rep. Gabe Vasquez told the president "you don't get to erase New Mexico." Both nominees to succeed Lujan Grisham rejected it: Democrat Deb Haaland ("You can't be serious") and Republican Gregg Hull, the mayor of Rio Rancho, who said the state's identity "is not up for negotiation." Outside the state, Sen. Mike Lee of Utah was the lone elected Republican to weigh in, posting: "New America? Kind of catchy."
“This is truly unhinged behavior from the President of the United States. I don't want to hear 'oh, it's just Trump being Trump' or that he's 'trolling.' Enough. None of this is normal or okay. Republicans cannot keep shrugging this off.”