Ontario Premier Doug Ford has unveiled a new Lake Ontario sign Saturday afternoon, just days after U.S. President Donald Trump renamed the Great Lake as “Lake America.” Ford’s appearance in Winona, Ont., came as Canada-U.S. trade tensions continue to escalate, with the premier using the name change to reinforce his message that Ontario will “never back down” and always defend its interests. “President Trump can call it whatever, but I can tell you the rest of the world will always call it Lake Ontario,” Ford said. “I receive numerous calls from governors that are saying, ‘we’re always going to call it Lake Ontario,’ and obviously Canada is always going to call it Lake Ontario. So that’s our message to President Trump,” ‘We’ll never ever back down’ Trump signed an executive order directing the federal agencies to transition to the name “Lake America” in official databases and maps. The move notably follows Trump’s previous push to rename the Gulf of Mexico as the “Gulf of America” in U.S. government use. Prime Minister Mark Carney has rejected the Lake Ontario name change, pointing to the lake’s longstanding history and the Wendat origins of the name. Ford took a similarly defiant tone Saturday, saying political leaders on both sides of the border have told him they will continue using Lake Ontario. “We’re resilient, and we’re strong Canadians,” Ford said. “We’re always going to protect our sovereignty, always, and we’ll never ever back down from a bully ever.” ‘Everything’s on the table’ Ford also used the appearance to reiterate his support for Ottawa in any future trade negotiations with the United States. He said Ontario and other provinces remain united in pushing for an agreement that protects Canadian workers and businesses, saying “everything’s on the table right now, absolutely everything.” “We need to get a deal, a fair deal,” he added. Ford then described the previous proposal on the table as “terrible” and said it would have hurt key sectors of Ontario’s economy, including steel, automotive and auto-parts manufacturing. “No deal is better than a bad deal,” he said, adding that Ontario as “the engine of Canada” and that his government would continue working to protect the province as the trade dispute unfolds. “We led North America in job creation... we’re going to continue moving forward with our policies and create opportunities and prosperity for the people of Ontario.”
