Well, here we are again—another round of media outrage, another Trump controversy, and yet another example of everyone arguing about the wrong things while real issues go ignored. This time, the hullabaloo is about President Trump renaming the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America and then barring the Associated Press (AP) from Air Force One and the Oval Office because they refuse to use the new name.

Now, let’s be clear: Trump has done plenty of things worth defending. He’s fought for religious liberty, appointed conservative judges, and stood up to the left-wing media’s hypocrisy. But this? This is just silly. Let’s break it down.

Blocking the AP Over This Is Just Dumb

I’ll be the first to say it—the AP is no bastion of honest journalism. They tilt left, distort narratives, and selectively apply their so-called “editorial standards” to suit their ideological biases. Philip Klein at National Review is absolutely right when he says that the AP long ago gave up any pretense of neutrality. So, no, I don’t have much sympathy for them when they get locked out of White House events.

But even if the AP has it coming, this is the dumbest possible reason to do it. If Trump had kicked them out over their actual bias—like how they sanitize Hamas propaganda or how they refuse to call people “illegal immigrants” while engaging in their own Orwellian language manipulation—I’d at least understand. But banning them because they won’t say Gulf of America? That’s just petty. It turns a real problem (media bias) into a joke.

If Trump wants to go after the press, great. But pick a real battle.

The Name Change Is Unnecessary

I understand why conservatives get frustrated when leftists rename things to push an ideological agenda. The left rewrites language constantly—whether it’s redefining marriage, erasing gender, or pretending that the phrase “illegal immigrant” is somehow offensive. We don’t need to play the same game.

The Gulf of Mexico is called that because—brace yourself—it’s next to Mexico. That’s not an insult to America. It’s just geography. The Mississippi River isn’t unpatriotic because it doesn’t have “America” in the name. Neither is the Atlantic Ocean, the Pacific Ocean, or Lake Michigan (which, by the way, also touches Wisconsin and Indiana).

Now, if Trump had renamed it the Gulf of the Americas, that might have at least made more sense. After all, “America” isn’t just the United States—it’s two whole continents. But Gulf of America? That’s just unnecessary.

3. The AP Doesn’t Have a Constitutional Right to Air Force One

Let’s be clear on another point: this is not a First Amendment violation.

The First Amendment prevents the government from censoring the press or stopping them from publishing whatever they want. It does not entitle the AP to a seat on Air Force One. If every news organization had a constitutional right to be on the president’s plane, it would never get off the ground.

That being said, should a president use press access as a political weapon? No, probably not. But let’s not pretend that this is some grand attack on free speech. The AP is still free to report the news however they want. They’re just not getting a free ride on the president’s plane.

The Left’s Hypocrisy on Free Speech Is Infuriating

Cue the usual suspects in the liberal media screaming about how this is an “assault on the free press.”

• Rex Huppke (USA Today) is melting down about Trump “banning words” and acting like this is some grand authoritarian move.
• Steve Benen (MSNBC) says this is an attack on journalism and a sign that Republicans want to control language.
• Brian O’Neill (The Contrarian) somehow compares this toChina’s territorial expansion in the South China Sea, which is possibly the dumbest take of all.

Where was all this righteous outrage when conservative voices were actually being censored?

The same people who are losing their minds over this were completely fine when Twitter, Facebook, and Google worked together to suppress the Hunter Biden laptop story right before the 2020 election. They had no problem when Big Tech banned Trump from social media, despite him being a sitting president. They have no issue with conservatives getting deplatformed for the crime of holding Christian beliefs on marriage and gender.

The left only cares about “free speech” when it benefits them. The hypocrisy is off the charts.

No, This Isn’t Like China Rewriting Maps

Brian O’Neill claims that if the U.S. can rename a body of water, China will take it as permission to rename and claim territory in the South China Sea.

This is completely absurd.

China doesn’t rename things as a branding exercise—they do it as part of a deliberate, strategic effort to lay claim to international waters. They rename islands and land features to justify territorial expansion. Trump renaming a Gulf that’s still fully recognized as an international body of water is not the same thing.

China wants to expand its control. Trump just wants to put “America” on stuff. These are not the same.

If Obama Had Done This, the Media Would Shrug

Gilad Edelman at The Atlantic makes a great point: Obama changed the name of Mount McKinley to Denali, and the media barely blinked. There were no First Amendment freak-outs, no dramatic comparisons to China, no cries of “authoritarianism.”

But when Trump does something similar? It’s suddenly a constitutional crisis. The media’s double standards are exhausting.

7. The AP Is Biased, But This Is the Wrong Fight

I don’t trust the AP. They manipulate language for ideological reasons, they frame stories to fit their progressive agenda, and they selectively decide when “editorial standards” matter.

Brad Slager at RedState nailed it—the AP stylebook is basically a leftist activism manual. They insist on capitalizing “Black” while leaving “white” lowercase. They won’t use “illegal immigrant” because they claim actions can be illegal, but people can’t (which is ridiculous—if you steal a car, you’re a thief). They frame every major issue from a progressive angle.

But this is not the fight to pick. Trump should be hammering them for their dishonest reporting, their biased framing, and their selective outrage—not over whether they call a body of water by its historical name.

Final Thoughts: Trump Needs to Move on to Bigger Issues

Look, I get it. Trump fights, and that’s what people love about him. He doesn’t roll over for the media. He doesn’t let the left dictate the narrative. That’s great. But this? This is a waste of time.

Would I lose sleep if we called it the Gulf of America? No. Would I love to see the AP held accountable for its blatant bias? Absolutely. But this particular battle is unnecessary, petty, and not worth the distraction.

Trump should be focused on securing the border, fighting inflation, standing up for religious liberty, and protecting American families—not getting into a pointless branding war over a body of water.

If he really wants to rename something, how about we start with the Department of Education and call it the Department of Leftist Indoctrination? Now that would be worth the fight.