▲ Trump campaigning in Tennessee
U.S. President Donald Trump has raised the possibility of renaming the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, following his previous changes to the names of the Gulf of Mexico and Lake Ontario.
According to the U.S. daily The Washington Post, President Trump mentioned during a midterm election campaign rally in Clarksville, Tennessee, on the 10th local time, "We have a gulf and a beautiful lake," referring to the Gulf of Mexico and Lake Ontario, which he had renamed the Gulf of America and Lake America, respectively.
He then said, "And somebody said we need a river too, we need a river and we need an ocean," adding, "Call it the 'Trump Ocean' or the 'Ocean of the Americas' or something like that."
He added, "I think before I leave office we ought to have at least one ocean, and we need a great river."
The Washington Post interpreted that President Trump hinted at the possibility of changing the name of either the Atlantic or the Pacific Ocean, and appeared to have jokingly mentioned including his own name in the new title.
Previously, President Trump signed an executive order changing the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America upon taking office early last year.
This caused diplomatic friction with Mexico, and he even blocked a journalist from the Associated Press, which maintained the use of the term Gulf of Mexico, from entering White House events.
Also, last August, he provoked Canada by signing an executive order to change the name of Lake Ontario, located along the U.S.-Canada border, to Lake America.
U.S. presidents can exercise executive authority to change the names of geographical features, including bodies of water.
Private companies providing online mapping services have generally accepted the new names designated by President Trump.
(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)
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