Did Trump sign executive order changing name of New Mexico to ‘New America’? Here’s the truth

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<p dir="ltr"><span>Rumors circulated widely online alleging that federal authorities approved an initiative to rename New Mexico to "New America." One particularly viral post asserted that U.S. President Donald Trump enacted this change via an executive order in the opening days of September 2026.</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>This fiction gained traction in the wake of an authentic directive issued by Trump on August 27, 2026, which officially renamed Lake Ontario to "Lake America" within U.S. borders.</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>On September 1, an X user operating the handle @DailyNoud </span><a href="https://x.com/DailyNoud/status/2094856215708733828"><span>posted the falsehood</span></a><span> (</span><a href="https://perma.cc/8WYE-DYT2"><span>archived</span><span>), stating, "Donald Trump has signed an executive order to change the name of New Mexico to New America." Before long, the post accumulated over 2.7 million views.</span></span></p>

<p dir="ltr"><span>Similar iterations of the narrative popped up across </span><a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/DcwVqBvGt-a/"><span>Instagram</span></a><span>, </span><a href="https://www.threads.com/@dailynoud/post/DcwVL3_mV4J/donald-trump-has-signed-an-executive-order-to-change-the-name-of-new-mexico-to/"><span>Threads</span></a><span>, and </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/246212432428603/posts/3003252086724610/"><span>Facebook</span></a><span>. Because many users accepted the story at face value, concerned readers reached out to our team seeking clarification.</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>To verify the validity of these assertions, we conducted searches using platforms like </span><a href="https://perma.cc/UTS7-R5B6?type=image"><span>DuckDuckGo</span></a><span> and </span><a href="https://perma.cc/HWN3-NW9Y"><span>Bing</span></a><span>. Had the Trump administration truly authorized a state renaming or signed a corresponding executive order, these searches would have returned official documentation or news coverage.</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>However, no such evidence existed, and legitimate news outlets carried no reports of an effort to alter New Mexico's official designation.</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>Tracing the rumor back to its origin led us to Casper Planet, a satirical social media page whose bio explicitly notes it publishes "Snews that doesn't matter." The original post did not explicitly mention an executive order from Trump, asserting instead that "federal officials have reportedly approved plans to rename the state of New Mexico to New America." (The account @DailyNoud is also recognized as a satirical profile.)</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>On August 29, 2026, the Casper Planet Facebook page </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/casperplanet/posts/new-mexico-to-be-renamed-new-america-following-federal-geographic-naming-changes/1491788826316046/" target="_blank">published the fictitious report</a><span> (</span><a href="https://perma.cc/F5Q5-4GMC">archived</a><span>):</span></p>

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    <div class="xdj266r x14z9mp xat24cr x1lziwak x1vvkbs x126k92a">
        <p><strong>New Mexico To Be Renamed New America Following Federal Geographic Naming Changes</strong></p>
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        <p>WASHINGTON - Federal officials have reportedly approved plans to rename the state of New Mexico to New America, continuing a recent effort to update geographic names across the country.</p>
        <p>&nbsp;</p>
        <p>According to officials familiar with the change, the word "Mexico" was identified during a routine review of American maps and was determined to be geographically confusing.</p>
        <p>&nbsp;</p>
        <p>The change is expected to affect highway signs, government documents and approximately 14 million souvenir coffee mugs.</p>
        <p>&nbsp;</p>
        <p>Residents will officially become New Americans, while people born there before the change will reportedly be allowed to continue identifying as New Mexicans during a two-year transition period.</p>
        <p>&nbsp;</p>
        <p>Mexico has not been consulted.</p>
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<p dir="ltr"><span>Alongside a "Satire Street" location tag, the page's </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/casperplanet" target="_blank"><span>biography</span></a><span> clarifies (</span><a href="https://perma.cc/4E89-5Z33" target="_blank"><span>archived</span></a><span>):</span></p>

<blockquote>
    <p>Delivering the Snews that doesn't matter directly to your Snews feed. Did we say this is satire? Well it is, names/locations are made up</p>
</blockquote>

<p dir="ltr"><span>We previously spoke with the page administrator, Justin Hathaway, in January 2026 regarding another piece of satire involving </span><a href="https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/historic-wind-storm-wyoming-satire/" target="_self"><span>AI-generated images</span></a><span> of towering snow banks at Wyoming’s Devils Tower. Hathaway explained his motivations, stating, "I just love doing this satire stuff, it's such an outlet for me." He added, "Another reason is people don't really read things fully anymore, and it's a good way to educate people on reading stories fully if they sound somewhat unbelievable."</span></p>

<p dir="ltr"><span>Casper Planet has been responsible for other tall tales evaluated by our team, including a fabricated warning from Yellowstone National Park officials that </span><a href="https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/yellowstone-ravens-open-car-doors/"><span>ravens had learned how to open car doors</span></a><span>, as well as a satirical report regarding a man arrested for a DUI while </span><a href="https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/wyoming-man-dui-arrest-bear/" target="_self"><span>riding a bear</span></a><span>.</span></p>

<p><i>Because the effectiveness of </i><a href="https://www.snopes.com/notes/snopes-satire-parody/" target="_self"><i>satire is subjective</i></a><i>, we apply <span>"</span></i><a href="https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/rating/originated_as_satire/" target="_self"><i><span>originated as satire</span></i></a><i><span>" or "</span></i><a href="https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/rating/labeled_satire/" target="_self"><i><span>labeled satire</span></i></a><i><span>" classifications based on how creators characterize their own material.</span></i></p>