President Donald Trump announced on Tuesday that he intends to maintain restrictions on The Associated Press’ (AP) access to his events and press conferences until the news organization agrees to adopt his proposed renaming of the Gulf of Mexico in its coverage. Trump revealed that these actions are a form of retaliation against the news agency’s editorial stance.
“We’re going to keep them out until such time as they agree that it’s the Gulf of America,” Trump declared to reporters during an executive order signing event at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. “We’re very proud of this country, and we want it to be the Gulf of America.”
This marked the first instance in which Trump addressed the ongoing dispute, which escalated when the White House limited AP’s coverage of certain presidential activities last week. On Tuesday, two AP journalists were denied entry to Mar-a-Lago, forcing them to watch a live feed of Trump’s comments without the ability to pose questions.
Shortly after assuming the presidency, Trump renamed the body of water that separates the United States from Mexico and other countries — a name it has held for over four centuries. The AP, which publishes a style guide followed by numerous media outlets, stated that it would continue to use “Gulf of Mexico” and highlight Trump’s decision, so that geographical names remain universally recognized.
“The Associated Press just refuses to go with what the law is,” Trump claimed, seemingly alluding to his executive order about the Gulf. However, AP is not legally bound to conform to Trump’s renaming initiative.
AP spokesperson Lauren Easton commented on the situation, noting that “this is about the government dictating language to the public and press, retaliating if those directives are not followed. The White House is restricting AP’s coverage of presidential proceedings due to our naming conventions.”
While AP has framed the situation as a free speech concern, Trump’s administration maintains that access to government events — predominantly funded by taxpayer money — is an earned privilege. Although AP remains allowed on White House grounds, it has lost the right to participate in coverage pools for events with limited space.
Despite Trump’s claims that AP stands alone in its refusal to adopt the new name, other major outlets, including The New York Times and The Washington Post, continue to use “Gulf of Mexico.” Fox News Channel has stated it will refer to it as the “Gulf of America,” while Axios, focusing on a U.S. audience, described it as “Gulf of America (renamed by the U.S. from Gulf of Mexico).” Furthermore, AP’s numerous clients tend to adhere to its established style guidelines.
This debacle is part of an escalating series of actions from the White House targeting established media outlets. The Pentagon has shifted eight organizations from their office spaces, and Trump has persisted with his lawsuit against CBS News regarding how they edited a “60 Minutes” interview featuring his opponent, Kamala Harris.
Elon Musk, responsible for implementing staffing cutbacks for Trump, asserted on his social media platform after a “60 Minutes” broadcast that those involved “deserve a long prison sentence.”
Beyond the naming dispute, Trump expressed broader frustrations with the AP. Through an Axios report over the weekend, White House Deputy Chief of Staff Taylor Budowich shared that the administration is alarmed by AP’s perceived “weaponization of language through their Stylebook to advance a partisan agenda.”
Specific points of contention include the term “gender-affirming care” related to medical treatments for transgender individuals, as well as the capitalization of “Black” and not “white” in racial discussions. Trump criticized some AP terminology as “ridiculous” and “obsolete,” though he did not elaborate further on which specific terms he found acceptable or not.
He mentioned, in the third person, that AP “has been very, very wrong on the election regarding Trump and the treatment of Trump and other matters relating to Trump and Republicans. They are doing us no favors, and I guess I’m doing them no favors. That’s the nature of life.”
It remains ambiguous which election Trump was referencing, given that the AP reported Joe Biden as the winner of the 2020 presidential race against Trump, while Trump won against Harris in the following election.
During Trump’s Tuesday appearance at Mar-a-Lago, several outlets not part of the small group of reporters accompanying the president since Friday were granted access. Among those allowed entry were The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Axios, Fox News Channel, and Agence France-Presse.
