There are only two forces that can carry light to all the corners of the globe… the sun in the heavens and the Associated Press down here. – Mark Twain
With so much consequential and incompetent lunacy on display, let’s talk about simple pettiness for a moment. There’s a lot of that going around, too, but what I’m referring to is the Trump administration’s war on the Associated Press — over one word.
Donald Trump, of course, is at war with any media outlet that dares criticize him in any way. Most politicians take umbrage when criticized by the media, but Trump is different. He tries to do something about it, something vengeful. He can’t seem to help himself.
In this case, doing something about it means barring AP journalists from attending Oval Office events and from riding on Air Force One with other journalists who cover the president. This, despite the AP being the oldest and largest news organization in the country — and the one Mark Twain loved above all others.
Trump’s war on the AP isn’t about criticism, though. No, it’s about the AP’s style decision regarding the Gulf of Mexico.
The Gulf of Mexico covers about 600,000 square miles and borders three countries, America, Mexico and Cuba. The name Gulf of Mexico has stood since at least the late 16th century. English geographer Richard Hakluyt referred to the “Gulfe of Mexico” in The Principall Navigations, Voiages and Discoveries of the English Nation (1589). That same year, Italian cartographer Baptista Boazio produced a map of Sir Francis Drake’s 1585–86 naval campaign against Spanish colonial holdings in the Americas. Boazio depicted Drake’s fleet skirting the edge of the “Baye of Mexico.”
Ever since then, more than 400 years, it has been the Gulf of Mexico.
Until Donald Trump’s Executive Order 14172, entitled, Restoring Names That Honor American Greatness. In it, Trump renamed the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America. His justification? Here it is, straight from 14172:
“Sec. 4. Gulf of America. (a) The area formerly known as the Gulf of Mexico has long been an integral asset to our once burgeoning Nation and has remained an indelible part of America. The Gulf was a crucial artery for America’s early trade and global commerce. It is the largest gulf in the world, and the United States coastline along this remarkable body of water spans over 1,700 miles and contains nearly 160 million acres. Its natural resources and wildlife remain central to America’s economy today. The bountiful geology of this basin has made it one of the most prodigious oil and gas regions in the world, providing roughly 14% of our Nation’s crude-oil production and an abundance of natural gas, and consistently driving new and innovative technologies that have allowed us to tap into some of the deepest and richest oil reservoirs in the world. The Gulf is also home to vibrant American fisheries teeming with snapper, shrimp, grouper, stone crab, and other species, and it is recognized as one of the most productive fisheries in the world, with the second largest volume of commercial fishing landings by region in the Nation, contributing millions of dollars to local American economies. The Gulf is also a favorite destination for American tourism and recreation activities. Further, the Gulf is a vital region for the multi-billion-dollar U.S. maritime industry, providing some of the largest and most impressive ports in the world. The Gulf will continue to play a pivotal role in shaping America’s future and the global economy, and in recognition of this flourishing economic resource and its critical importance to our Nation’s economy and its people, I am directing that it officially be renamed the Gulf of America.”
It’s a mouthful, but reducing it to one sentence, you get: The Gulf has oil and gas, fish, and ports, and we drill, fish, and ship from it, so it’s ours.
Under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, U.S. waters extend 12 nautical miles from its coastline (as do Mexico’s and Cuba’s), and the Gulf is recognized as the Gulf of Mexico.
Despite three countries sharing the Gulf’s coastline, Donald Trump has asserted that the US does “the most work” there, and the body of water should bear America’s name because “it’s ours,” adding, “the American name has a beautiful ring.”
Back to the AP.
The Associated Press’s Stylebook contains more than 5,000 writing guidelines. As the Writing Lab at Purdue University puts it:
“Associated Press style provides guidelines for news writing. Many newspapers, magazines and public relations offices across the United States use AP style. Although some publications such as the New York Times have developed their own style guidelines, a basic knowledge of AP style is considered essential to those who want to work in print journalism.”
Now in its 57th edition, the AP Stylebook has become the gold standard for journalists and other writers. Many news outlets and other organizations use it as an arbiter of how to refer to things authoritatively. When a writer is confused about some compositional issue, they open their AP Stylebook and see a consistently reliable answer. And reliable consistency matters. That is why the AP doesn’t make changes to its Stylebook without a lot of thought.
On the day Trump announced the Gulf of America, his executive order also renamed Mount Denali as Mount McKinley. And this change the AP adopted — because all of Denali, now McKinley, is in the U.S., and Trump has the authority to rename it. But because the Gulf of Mexico is a globally referenced, internationally recognized, and United Nations-adopted, name, the AP will stick with its international appellation.¹
For some bizarre reason, this angered Trump, and, because of the monarchical underpinning of this administration, it angered every governmental Trump ring-kisser. Karoline Leavitt, Trump’s press secretary, who, in just three weeks, eclipsed everyone else in the Trump orb in Trump worshipping, said, “it is a fact that the body of water off the coast of Louisiana is called the Gulf of America, and I’m not sure why news outlets don’t want to call it that.” At that point, it had been a historical “fact” to Trump loyalists for about six hours.
The Associated Press will continue apace. It has weathered all kinds of blowhards since its founding in 1846. It will weather the pettiness of Donald Trump.
Thinking about Trump, I can’t help but wonder if, for all his bluster and narcissistic sociopathy, there isn’t just barely living, unfathomably deep within him, an anguished sliver of a purgatorial soul despising everything he does.
Nah! Forget that. He’s just an evil old man.
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¹ Here is the AP’s official Stylebook entry regarding Trump’s attempted change:
President Donald Trump has signed an executive order to rename the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America. The body of water has shared borders between the U.S. and Mexico. Trump’s order only carries authority within the United States. Mexico, as well as other countries and international bodies, do not have to recognize the name change.The Gulf of Mexico has carried that name for more than 400 years. Refer to it by its original name while acknowledging the new name Trump has chosen.Per the AP Stylebook, you may also use Gulf or Gulf Coast to describe the body of water along the Louisiana, Texas, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida coasts.
