On President Donald Trump's Inauguration Day, Governor Ron DeSantis made Florida the first state to reference the "Gulf of America" in an executive order when he issued a state of emergency due to cold weather.

The decision to fly flags at full-staff during Trump's inauguration diverges from President Joe Biden's order that flags remain at half-staff for 30 days to honor Carter, who passed away on December 29, 2024. DeSantis' move aligns with at least seven other Republican-led states who have ordered flags be flown at full-staff for Inauguration Day.

The potential name change is more likely to spread confusion than awe —  especially if the same body of water is called different names by different countries.

DeSantis has been above water his entire six years in office, though he saw his nadir the latter half of 2020, when the state struggled with the pandemic, high unemployment and a failing unemployment assistance website. He was at +1 and +2 in the Fall and Winter quarters, respectively.