Marjorie Taylor Greene Introduces Bill to Rename Gulf of Mexico

WASHINGTON — Just days after President-elect Donald Trump suggested he plans to change the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., introduced a measure that would do just that.

“The American people are footing the bill to protect and secure the maritime waterways for commerce to be conducted. Our U.S. armed forces protect the area from any military threats from foreign countries. It’s our gulf,” Greene said in a written statement announcing the introduction of the bill.

“The rightful name is the Gulf of America and it’s what the entire world should refer to it as,” she said.

Trump announced his heretofore undisclosed plan for the Gulf during a freewheeling news conference at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida on Tuesday.

“We’re going to be changing the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America,” he said. “Gulf of America — what a beautiful name. And it’s appropriate.”

Trump did not say how he intended to effect the change, but left no doubt he was serious.

“We’re going to change it,” he said. “We do most of the work there … and it’s ours.”

On Wednesday, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum had a little fun at Trump’s expense, opening her own news conference in Mexico City with a 17th Century map of North and South America as a backdrop.

On the map, drafted in 1607, the cartographer labeled North America, including the area that would become the United States, “America Mexicana.”

“Obviously the Gulf of Mexico is recognized by the United Nations, but why don’t we call this ‘Mexican America'”? Sheinbaum said, gesturing toward an area on the map roughly corresponding to Texas and Oklahoma.

Greene’s response was rolled into her statement on introducing the bill.

“Mexican cartels currently use the Gulf of Mexico to traffic humans, drugs, weapons, and God knows what else while the Mexican government allows them to do it,” she said.

There is some precedent to a president changing a geographic place name.

In August 2015, President Barack Obama signed an executive order changing the name of Mount McKinley in Alaska, the nation’s tallest peak, from “McKinley” to “Denali,” the name it had before being dedicated to honor the assassinated President William McKinley in 1917.

At the time, administration officials explained Obama wanted to highlight the effects of climate change in the Arctic, and “recognize the sacred status of Denali to generations of Alaska Natives.”

They also noted that President McKinley never visited the mountain and had no historical connection to it or the state of Alaska for that matter.

There are also numerous examples of large bodies of water being known by more than one name. 

The classic example is the body of water that separates Iran from Saudi Arabia. Most of us think of it as the “Persian Gulf,” but Saudi Arabia, a major U.S. ally, calls it the “Arabian Gulf.”

Interestingly, because of our close military ties, the U.S. Navy has also adopted the name “Arabian Gulf.” 

However, the U.S. Board of Geographic names, the authority on geographic names that is part of the U.S. Geological Survey, mandates that “Persian Gulf” be used in all other circumstances.

Greene’s bill directs the chairman of the Board on Geographic Names to rename all federal documents and maps within 180 days of the change being signed into law.

Urging her colleagues to pass the legislation quickly, Greene added, “This is a piece of day one legislation that can easily be awaiting President Trump’s signature the moment he takes his oath of office.”

The bill already has 14 cosponsors. They are Reps. Mary Miller, R-Ill., Barry Moore, R-Ala., Claudia Tenney, R-N.Y., Mike Collins, R-Ga., Randy Weber, R-Texas, Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., Mike Haridopolos, R-Fla., Greg Steube, R-Fla., Eric Burlison, R-Mo., Brian Babin, R-Texas, Michael Rulli, R-Ohio, Troy Nehls, R-Texas, and Brandon Gill, R-Texas.

Dan can be reached at [email protected] and at https://twitter.com/DanMcCue