In a flurry of activity on his first day in office, Donald Trump signed an order to rename the 617,800-square-mile Gulf of Mexico and Alaska’s 20,000-foot mountain, Denali.
The Gulf of Mexico will be renamed the Gulf of America and Denali, the highest peak in North America, will revert to Mount McKinley – the name it was given before Barack Obama changed it in 2015.
The renaming of the two natural features is intended to honor “American greatness,” according to an overview of the orders obtained by the New York Post.
“President Trump brings common sense to government and renews the pillars of American civilization,” the executive order said.
The order directs Trump’s interior secretary nominee to become North Dakota governor Doug Burgum to change the names of changes in federal communications and on official maps.
This will have no impact on names used internationally.
“President McKinley is honored to have given his life for our great nation and duly recognized for his historic legacy of protecting American interests and generating enormous wealth for our nation,” the draft executive order reads, which congratulates the body of water for its “pivotal” role in the maritime industry and for its “energy production, international trade, tourism, fishing and recreation”.
Mount McKinley was officially named for William McKinley in 1917, 16 years after he was assassinated during a public appearance in Buffalo, New York, although it was unofficially named McKinley in 1896 by a researcher from gold.
The name change would be of particular importance to the new president because he sees it as a kinship with McKinley. At a rally in December, Trump praised McKinley as “a great president, a very good president.” At the very least, he was a very good businessman. He was a businessman, then a governor, a very successful businessman.
Obama changed the name to Denali – the name given to it by the Koyukon speakers of the Koyukon Athabaskans of the western interior of Alaska.
The state of Alaska requested that the mountain be officially recognized as Denali in 1975, but the change was blocked by a congressional delegation from McKinley’s home state of Ohio.
Trump discussed renaming the Gulf of Mexico earlier this month in a speech about tariffs.
“We’re going to change the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America, which has a beautiful ring. This covers a large part of the territory, the Gulf of America. What a great name and it’s appropriate,” Trump said.
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