US President Donald Trump has proposed changing the name of the US state of New Mexico to 'New America'. However, Trump's proposal was immediately rejected by the state's Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham, who stated that the issue of changing New Mexico's name is not even open for discussion.
In a post on social media on Sunday, Trump said that many people have suggested changing New Mexico's name to 'New America'. In his words, the name would be 'more prestigious and beautiful' for the people of this promising state. At the end of the post, he wrote, 'I love it.'
The White House also republished an image consistent with Trump's remarks, in which the 'Mexico' portion of the name 'New Mexico' is crossed out and replaced with 'America'.
However, reports from several US media outlets indicate that the idea of changing the name to 'New America' actually originated from an internet-based joke or hoax campaign.
In response to Trump's proposal, New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham said that there is no scope for any debate regarding the state's name. According to her, this name has been in use since even before the founding of the United States.
The governor further alleged that Trump is making such proposals to distract American citizens from important issues such as rising fuel prices.
Previously, Trump has taken several controversial initiatives regarding name changes. Last week, in the context of the ongoing conflict with Iran, he proposed naming the Strait of Hormuz the 'Trump Strait'. However, just a few hours later, he hinted that he was not entirely serious about that plan.
On the very first day of assuming office for his second term at the White House in 2025, Trump initiated efforts to rename the Gulf of Mexico to the 'Gulf of America'. Mexico rejected that name change.
Additionally, amid a trade war with Canada, Trump initiated efforts to rename Lake Ontario to 'Lake America'. Canada also rejected that initiative.
Continuing these initiatives for name changes, the US president has now brought forward the proposal to change New Mexico's name.
