Mexican president says U.S. should be called "América Mexicana" in Trump clapback
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Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum says the United States should be called "Mexican America," in response to Trump's proposal to rename the Gulf of Mexico the "Gulf of America." Photo: Alfredo Estrella/AFP via Getty Images
Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum clapped back at President-elect Trump on Wednesday and said parts of the U.S. should be called "América Mexicana," in response to Trump's proposal to rename the Gulf of Mexico the "Gulf of America" at a press conference on Tuesday.
Why it matters: The response, using a troubled history of the U.S.-Mexican War in 1846-8, signaled that the Sheinbaum administration would not be intimidated by Trump's antics and threats.
The big picture: Sheinbaum's playful reaction came as Mexico has sent serious messages that it will defend the human rights of Mexicans in the U.S. who may be abused during Trump's planned mass deportations.
- Other Latin American leaders such as Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino have also rebuked Trump for social media posts about the Panama Canal and migration.
Zoom in: During a press conference Wednesday, Sheinbaum stood in front of a 1607 map showing the territory of northern Mexico and part of the present-day United States mixed together.
- Sheinbaum said without prompting from reporters that the joint region that used to belong to Mexico should be called "América Mexicana," or "Mexican America."
- "Why don't we call it "Mexican America?" It sounds nice, right? Since 1607, the Constitution of Apatzingán was of Mexican America. So, let's call it that."
Context: Trump said during Tuesday's press conference that the Gulf of America "has a beautiful ring."
- His remarks, which raise questions about how the renaming process would work, are the latest example of Trump flexing his power on the global stage before he takes office.
- Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) later said she plans to introduce legislation renaming the Gulf of Mexico the "Gulf of America."
Yes, but: Sheinbaum said that the Gulf of Mexico is registered by international institutions, and many countries recognize its name.
- She asked José Alfonso Suárez del Real, a historian and political advisor, to explain the origins of the name Gulf of Mexico.
- "Between Florida and Yucatán, the Mexican Gulf is recognized as a fundamental nautical point for navigation from the 17th century onwards," he said.
- The historian also pointed out that the name "Mexican America" existed before the first group of British colonists arrived in present-day Virginia.
Flashback: Much of the present-day American Southwest and West used to be territory under New Spain and later Mexico until the U.S. invaded in 1846 to seek more land for slavery.
- The 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo — which ended the U.S.-Mexico War — greatly expanded U.S. territory and made unkept promises to its new Mexican American citizens.
- They instead faced racial discrimination and racial violence and have for decades used the treaty as a tool to seek civil rights.
The intrigue: Some conservatives and white supremacists have promoted the "reconquista theory," claiming Mexican Americans wanted California, New Mexico and other swaths of the region to be given to Mexico.
- They have equated migration from Mexico to "an invasion," which is what Trump also has repeated.
