GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis on Monday issued a weather warning involving the “Gulf of America,” making Florida the first state to officially call the Gulf of Mexico by its new name mandated by President Donald Trump, according to outlets.
HuffPost could not verify Florida’s lead in massaging Trump’s ego, but The New York Times said DeSantis released the emergency message before Trump codified it in an executive order following the inauguration.
However, DeSantis’ quick adoption of the title almost certainly signaled his continued attempts to make up with Trump after their contentious primary campaigning in 2024.
“An area of low pressure moving across the Gulf of America, interacting with Arctic air, will bring widespread impactful winter weather to North Florida beginning Tuesday, January 21, 2025,” DeSantis’ office wrote.
“The Gulf will continue to play a pivotal role in shaping America’s future and the global economy, and in recognition of this flourishing economic resource and its critical importance to our Nation’s economy and its people, I am directing that it officially be renamed the Gulf of America,” Trump wrote in the order.
He had previously vowed to rechristen the Gulf of Mexico, which borders five states and Mexico, because “it’s ours.”
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Other countries can call the gulf what they wish, The Associated Press wrote.
“The Gulf of America ― what a beautiful name. And it’s appropriate,” Trump said. “We do most of the work there. It’s ours.”
Trump’s renaming is believed to be part of an attempt to assert the country’s territorial primacy, AP reported. He also has urged Denmark to turn over Greenland to the U.S. and Panama to cede control of the Panama Canal.