House passes GOP-led bill to rename Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America

The House has passed a Republican-led bill that would rename the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America, moving a step closer to codifying President Donald Trump’s push to rename the body of water.

The House has passed a Republican-led bill that would rename the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America, moving a step closer to codifying President Donald Trump’s push to rename the body of water. The bill, which lawmakers approved in a 211-206 vote, now moves to the Republican-led Senate for consideration. One Republican, Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska, voted with Democrats Thursday against the measure. Sponsored by Trump ally Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene and backed by House GOP leadership, the bill would require federal agencies to update all maps and documents with the name Gulf of America. The effort has drawn criticism from some Republican lawmakers, highlighting tensions within the party and raising questions ahead of the House vote about whether the measure would have enough support to pass given the chamber’s slim Republican majority. Bacon told CNN earlier this week that he would not vote for the bill, arguing that “it just seems juvenile.” “We’re the United States of America. We’re not Kaiser Wilhelm’s Germany or Napoleon France,” he said, adding, “We’re better than this. It just sounds like a sophomore thing to do.”