House Votes To Cement Trump’s ‘Gulf Of America’ Name Change

On Thursday, the GOP-led House moved to rename the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America, a move that helps to solidify the change favored by President Donald Trump.

The House voted 211-206 to pass the “Gulf of America Act” from Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), with most Republicans backing the measure. Rep. Don Bacon (R-NE), who told Fox News the bill “seems sophomoric,” joined with all voting Democrats in opposing the legislation.

“This is the first step to codify into law one of President Trump’s favorite executive orders,” Greene said on X, adding it “recognizes the entrepreneurs supporting the Gulf’s economy and the service men and women who protect its waters.”

The bill, which now heads to the Senate, mandates that all references to the Gulf of Mexico in U.S. laws, maps, regulations, and other federal documents be updated to reflect the new name.

In its implementation section, the legislation requires the Secretary of the Interior to oversee the renaming process through the Chairman of the Board on Geographic Names.

The bill also says federal agencies must update their documents and maps within 180 days of its enactment, however, the process has already begun thanks to the efforts of the Trump administration.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) had urged his colleagues to vote against what he called “this small-minded, silly, and sycophantic bill.” He also said, “America is not down with MTG.”

On X, Greene said, “Democrats are throwing a fit over renaming the Gulf of America, but why? Because they’d rather honor a foreign country run by drug cartels than stand up for the American people.”

Before starting his second term in January, Trump announced he would rename the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America. He took aim at Mexico, raising issues with trade deficits and cartels.

And, on the day of his inauguration, Trump signed an order directing the Interior Secretary to “take all appropriate actions” to rename the U.S. Continental Shelf area as the Gulf of America.

Trump then signed a proclamation on February 9, as he flew on Air Force One to attend the Super Bowl in New Orleans, making it “Gulf of America Day.”

“We’re flying right over it right now, so we thought this would be appropriate,” Trump said in a video posted to X, marking the new day of recognition. “Even bigger than the Super Bowl, this is a big thing.”

On that flight, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said his department had implemented the president’s instructions from the executive order.

“Another big win for President Trump’s agenda to Make America Great Again,” Burgum said in a post to X, which also featured a U.S. Geological Survey map showing the Gulf of America.

Back in January, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum shrugged off Trump’s push to rename the body of water, which is between their two countries.

“He says that he will call it the ‘Gulf of America’ on its continental shelf. For us it is still the Gulf of Mexico and for the entire world it is still the Gulf of Mexico,” Sheinbaum said, according to the Associated Press.