US President Donald Trump sparked international friction and domestic bewilderment over the Labor Day holiday weekend after unleashing a flurry of bizarre social media posts, which included AI-generated superhero videos, maps suggesting the annexation of foreign countries, and unilateral attempts to rename US states.
Among the torrent of memes posted to his Truth Social platform was an AI-generated video depicting Trump as the DC Comics superhero Green Lantern. In the clip, Trump wields a glowing green power ring to construct a border wall, illuminate an "American manufacturing" scene, and command a fleet of warplanes and warships. The imagery is part of a broader pattern of controversial AI-generated depictions shared by the president, who has previously portrayed himself as a Christ-like figure, the pope, Atlas, and Superman.
The weekend posts also carried significant geopolitical implications. Trump shared a map showing a US flag emblazoned over Greenland, Iceland, most of North America, several Central American nations, and numerous Caribbean islands. Following the post, Iceland summoned its US ambassador. Trump also separately claimed the moon. These posts align with a series of second-term provocations, during which Trump has repeatedly taunted Canada with threats of annexation as a 51st state using "economic force," and aggressively pursued Greenland, a self-governing Danish territory, causing a major diplomatic row. He has similarly threatened military intervention in Cuba, Colombia, and Mexico, threatened to seize the Panama Canal, and mused about taking over Micronesia and the Marshall Islands.
Domestically, Trump turned his attention to New Mexico, posting a map of the state with the word "Mexico" crossed out and replaced with "America." He followed this with an AI-generated video showing himself sticking an "America" label over the word "Mexico" on a "Welcome to New Mexico" road sign. However, Trump lacks the legal authority to rename any US state. The name of New Mexico predates the founding of the United States and is explicitly enshrined in the US Constitution, meaning any name change would require a formal constitutional amendment initiated by the state itself.
Trump also joked about renaming the Atlantic or Pacific oceans, as well as renaming the Strait of Hormuz—the center of his ongoing war against Iran—to the "Trump strait." He declined to elaborate on the proposal when questioned by a reporter in the Oval Office last week. Furthermore, while his "Lake America" executive order directs federal agencies to adopt that name-change for Lake Ontario on domestic maps and databases, he has no authority to rename the Canadian portion of the lake, nor can he compel Canada, international legal bodies, or global mapmakers to recognize the new name.
