White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt faced criticism on Wednesday after insisting it is “a fact” that the body of water ― that for hundreds of years has been known as the Gulf of Mexico ― is actually called the Gulf of America because President Donald Trump last month decreed it so.
CNN’s Kaitlan Collins had asked Leavitt in the White House press briefing if the Trump administration’s decision to bar The Associated Press from certain events this week was retaliation for AP’s continued reference to the Gulf of Mexico.
“Is this setting a precedent that this White House will retaliate against reporters who don’t use the language that you guys believe reporters should use?” Collins asked.
Leavitt said: “It is a fact that the body of water off the coast of Louisiana is called the Gulf of America, and I am not sure why news outlets don’t want to call it that, but that is what it is.”
The statement drew immediate backlash on social media, where many users accused the Trump White House of trying to police language and referenced George Orwell’s dystopian novel “1984.”