Washington — The House is expected to vote Thursday on a bill to rename the Gulf of Mexico as the “Gulf of America,” which would codify an executive order signed by President Trump on his second day in office.
But the bill is facing pushback from at least one Republican — Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska — and its passage in the lower chamber could be at risk if there are a few more GOP defections, depending on attendance and the ability of Democrats to remain united against it.
The bill was introduced by GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia in January and instructs federal agencies to update all documents and maps to reflect the name change within six months of enactment.
Even if the name change is codified into U.S. law, however, other countries would be under no obligation to refer to the Gulf of Mexico by the new name. If it isn’t codified, a future president could reverse Mr. Trump’s executive order.
“The American people are footing the bill to protect and secure the Gulf of America. It’s only right that it’s named appropriately,” Rep. Lisa McClain of Michigan, the chairwoman of the House Republican conference, said Tuesday.
Democrats have called the effort a waste of taxpayer dollars and said Congress should be spending its time on more serious issues.
The vote comes as House Republicans clash over slashing Medicaid and other social safety net programs to pay for Mr. Trump’s tax, border security and energy agenda. Republicans have also faced pushback in their districts over the Trump administration’s overhaul of the federal government.
An estimate from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office found that it would cost less than $500,000 over five years to update federal documents and maps. But during a House Rules Committee meeting Monday to advance the measure, Democrats noted that schools, libraries and municipalities would bear the costs of updating textbooks, signs and other materials.
“If a school district can’t afford to purchase an entirely new map, you know what? A sticker would do,” said Rep. Michelle Fischbach, a Minnesota Republican, on Monday. “Just put that over the top and put ‘Gulf of America.’ I mean, there are a lot of simple ways to deal with this.”
Bacon has publicly disagreed with his Republican colleagues, telling CNN earlier this week that the effort to rename the body of water “seems juvenile.”
“We’re the United States of America,” he said. “We’re not Kaiser Wilhelm’s Germany or Napoleon’s France. I just — we’re better than this. It just sounds like a sophomore thing to do.”
But the White House has dug in on the name change, restricting Associated Press reporters’ access to events over the news organization’s decision to refer to the Gulf by its original name, while also acknowledging the “Gulf of America” name. The Associated Press sued over the restrictions and a federal judge ruled that the White House restore its access to the Oval Office, Air Force One and other spaces and events when they are open to other reporters.