Podcast host Joe Rogan claimed Tuesday that President Donald Trump changed the name of Lake Ontario as a way to “distract” Americans from what he described as an unwinnable war in Iran.
Rogan raised the issue during a conversation with comedian Brian Simpson, questioning the reason behind changing the name of one of the Great Lakes.
“But Lake Ontario has been Lake Ontario forever,” Rogan said. “Isn’t it connected to Ontario?”
Rogan then sought clarification about whether the lake is located in the United States or Canada.
Simpson responded by joking that Trump needed to stop changing names because it could interfere with the acronym he learned to remember the Great Lakes.
“President Trump, you got to stop f—ing with the acronyms, man,” Simpson said. “Because I learned the Great Lakes, but I’ve learned HOMES. That’s how you can name all the lakes, right?”
Simpson was referring to the acronym HOMES, which represents Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie and Superior.
The two continued discussing where the Great Lakes are located and whether the bodies of water ultimately feed into the ocean. Simpson then directly questioned what Trump hoped to accomplish with the name change.
“But what’s the purpose of changing the name?” Simpson asked.
Rogan suggested the move could be intended to divert public attention from ongoing U.S. military action involving Iran.
“[It] could distract you from the fact that we’re in a war that we can’t win in Iran,” Rogan said. “It doesn’t make any sense. Like, who cares if it’s Lake Ontario?”
Rogan made the comments on the same day that U.S. Central Command announced American forces had carried out military airstrikes against targets inside Iran.
The strikes were ordered following Iranian attacks against American troops stationed in the Middle East, according to the report.
CENTCOM said in a social media post that U.S. forces began striking targets connected to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps at noon Eastern Time on Tuesday.
“Today at 12 p.m. ET, U.S. forces began striking Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) targets in Iran,” CENTCOM posted.
The military command said the operation followed recent attempted attacks by the IRGC against both commercial ships traveling through the Strait of Hormuz and American service members deployed in the region.
“The strikes follow recent attempted attacks by the IRGC against commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and against American service members deployed to the region,” CENTCOM added.
Trump had previously promised that he would order military strikes following an attack on American troops in Jordan.
Rogan, however, questioned the broader conflict during his discussion with Simpson and argued that changing Lake Ontario’s name could pull attention away from the fighting.
The exchange centered on Rogan’s contention that the lake’s longtime name did not need to be changed and Simpson’s concern that renaming it would disrupt the familiar acronym used to remember all five Great Lakes.
