Chuck Schumer shocked Washington by suggesting he was ready to work with Donald Trump on his plan to rename the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America
Trump received a lot of criticism from liberals and the leftist president of Mexico since he unveiled his plan – but has an apparent ally in the Senate Minority Leader.
While Schumer’s statement was caked in sarcasm – claiming Trump wasn’t concerned with important issues like lowering costs – he did agree to help the president-elect, if he would work with him in turn.
‘Donald Trump is in over his head. So he’s doing what he always does in times like this, distract America with crazy ideas. Renaming the Gulf of Mexico may be a zany new idea, but it isn’t going to help people save money at the grocery store,’ Schumer snarked.
Schumer then named his conditions for Trump to help him work on the Gulf of America plan.
‘If Donald Trump wants to rename a gulf to sound more patriotic, I’d say we will help him on one condition and only one condition: let’s come up with a real plan first — not a concept of a plan — to lower prices for Americans.’
Trump dropped the bombshell at the start of his press conference Tuesday when he announced plans to change the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America.
‘We are going be changing — the opposite of Biden closing everything up and getting rid of 50 to 60 trillion worth of assets — we’ll be changing the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America, which has a beautiful ring,’ he noted.
‘That covers a lot of territory. The Gulf of America. What a beautiful name. It is appropriate. It’s appropriate.’
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum launched a scathing dig at Donald Trump on Wednesday in response to his plan to change the name of the Gulf of Mexico to ‘Gulf of America.’
Sheinbaum dramatically unveiled a map dating back to the 1600s which showed an early designation of North America with the title ‘America Mexicana’ in giant letters.
And she said a document dating from 1814, that preceded Mexico’s constitution, referred that way to the area that now includes the United States.
‘Mexican America, that sounds nice, no?’ she said sarcastically, pointing to a massive image of the 17th Century map behind her. ‘He talked about name, we too are talking about the name.’
She made her comments during her daily press briefing in Mexico City, one day after Trump announced he wants to rename the Gulf of Mexico.
Sheinbaum noted on Wednesday that the Gulf of Mexico name is recognized by the United Nations and internationally.
She was joined by cultural adviser Alfonso Suarez del Real who detailed the backstory of the ‘Mexican America’ name for North America.
‘The fact is that Mexican America is recognized since the 17th Century… as the name for the whole northern part of the continent,’ Suarez del Real said.
He added that the Gulf of Mexico’s name was internationally recognized and used as a navigational reference for hundreds of years.
Despite their differences, Sheinbaum said on Wednesday she expects to have a good relationship with Trump.
After Trump announced his plan to rename the Gulf of Mexico, Republican lawmakers signaled their support for the move.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) announced she would introduce a bill to change the Gulf of Mexico’s name and argued the entire world should use ‘Gulf of America.’
The proposed legislation directs the commerce secretary to oversee implementing the new name across U.S. government documents and maps.
If Trump was able to change the Gulf of Mexico’s name, other countries would not necessarily have to go along with it.
While Sheinbaum’s joke quickly ricocheted across social media feeds, it also set the tone for what her relationship with Trump could look like in the coming years.
‘Humor can be a good tactic, it projects strength, which is what Trump responds to. It was probably the right choice on this issue,’ said Brian Winter, vice president of the New York-based Council of the Americas.
‘Although President Sheinbaum knows it won’t work on everything – Trump and his administration will demand serious engagement from Mexico on the big issues of immigration, drugs and trade.’