Lake America? President Trump mulls renaming Lake Ontario amid escalating trade fight with Canada

Washington (CBS) — President Trump threatened Tuesday to change the name of Lake Ontario to "Lake America" amid an escalating trade fight with Canada. 

"The United States is giving serious consideration to changing the name of Lake Ontario to Lake America," Mr. Trump said in a post on Truth Social Tuesday morning, claiming the U.S. doesn't expect to be "doing much business with Ontario any longer." 

Mr. Trump's comments came as tense trade dynamics with the U.S.' northern neighbor have come to a head in recent days, in the latest dustup between two historically allied countries. On Saturday, the U.S. began imposing 50% tariffs on hundreds of Canadian goods after negotiators failed to reach an agreement to resolve the standoff over trade between the key partner countries, prompting Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney to promise new retaliatory tariffs against the U.S. 

On Monday, Mr. Trump announced that the U.S. will impose a 50% tariff on all Canadian automotive and steel imports beginning in January, while claiming that "Canada has been ripping off the United States of America for years."

"Canada will be treated like a State no longer!" Mr. Trump added.

Lake Ontario sits between Ontario, Canada's most populous province, and New York state. Mr. Trump and Ontario's Premier Doug Ford sparred on Monday, with Ford calling the U.S. president a "loser" and a "dictator" and pledging to "fight with everything we have."

During his second term, Mr. Trump has repeatedly made threats to make Canada into the 51st U.S. state and sparred with Canadian leaders over trade, NATO, and a dispute over a Detroit-area bridge.