Apple Maps Changes Name of Lake Ontario to Lake America

pic.twitter.com/5Rq51CKfK9

— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) September 2, 2026

Apple Maps joins Google Maps in changing the name of Lake Ontario to Lake America.

Bill Maher, Lake Ontario, and Liberals

HILARIOUS: Bill Maher: “Trump is so mad at Canada, he renamed Lake Ontario Lake America… Liberals are very pissed at this. They say you can’t just go around renaming to suit your political agenda. Just ask any Latinx birthing person.”

NUKED! pic.twitter.com/ETZkHdqNgJ

— RedWave Press (@RedWavePress) August 29, 2026

Presidents Renaming Stuff

Obama and Biden changed names on forts, ships, mountains. They changed nouns and pronouns. But Trump changes names to promote America and these same people lose what’s left of their minds.

— Mark R. Levin (@marklevinshow) August 27, 2026

When Obama and Biden renamed things and places, Democrats/Leftists didn't have a problem with it. Remember when Obama changed the name of Mount McKinley to Denali?

Flipping out when President Trump does the same is not a good look. Hypocrites. Trump-deranged lunatics.

Trump: 'All We Need Is an Ocean'

.@POTUS: "We have a Gulf and we have a Lake — now all we need is an ocean. Maybe we'll have to change the name of the Atlantic and/or the Pacific. Maybe we'll change them both." 🤣 https://t.co/Cj01PCOkSm pic.twitter.com/Tz7vGndw1S

— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) August 27, 2026

Sounds good.

Lake Ontario Is Now Lake America

EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY: Lake Ontario is renamed to LAKE AMERICA! 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/ZFww8PexiW

— The White House (@WhiteHouse) August 27, 2026

pic.twitter.com/tyZ6Ggo38e

— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) August 27, 2026

Why not?

Making the Great Lakes Even Greater.

NEW: President Trump explains the reason why he's renaming Lake Ontario to "Lake America," and takes aim at the Canadian government.

"They want to be treated like a state. But they're not a state. "

"We lose on average over the last 15 years, $60 billion a year carrying Canada.… pic.twitter.com/qbe59CE89z

— Fox News (@FoxNews) August 27, 2026

This is silly and won't stick. However, it does highlight the problem with Canada.

Do grade school kids learn about the Great Lakes? Are they required to know the names of the five Great Lakes?

They probably learn that they are stolen. Other than that, I don't think they receive much attention. I wonder how many Americans born in the last thirty years have a clue that there is a Lake Ontario.

Renaming Lake Ontario to Lake America

pic.twitter.com/sywAwCamdF

— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) August 25, 2026

And while we're at it, let's change the name of Lake Michigan to Lake Wisconsin. Why not?

Save Lake Michigan

pic.twitter.com/AVqokiYnjI

— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) March 10, 2026

Thank you, President Trump, for your attention to this matter.

Edmund Fitzgerald Sinks - 50 Years Ago

(LOUD WARNING) Full house for the Federal Dart’s arrival! They arrived at 2:15, the time the Edmund Fitzgerald left Superior 50 years ago today. Ship + bridge exchanged a Master salute as a memorial pic.twitter.com/uFAadv8RFO

— the wreck of duluth’s famous kaylee (@kayleefabulous) November 9, 2025

When the 729-foot-long SS Edmund Fitzgerald sank in Lake Superior on Nov. 10, 1975, it took its entire 29-member crew with it. The men were connected to dozens of families and a number of comrades in the shipping and freight industry. We remember and honor them 50 years later.… pic.twitter.com/GjRNnlQXzt

— Detroit Free Press (@freep) November 3, 2025

50 years ago today, the Arthur M. Anderson began a journey across Lake Superior that would forever link her to the Edmund Fitzgerald. The Anderson’s brave search that night lives on in Great Lakes legends and stories. 🔔🔔 pic.twitter.com/MxplDIIcle

— Visit Sault Ste. Marie (@VisitTheSault) November 9, 2025

Air Quality Alert for Wisconsin - AGAIN

🚨Wisconsin has the most unhealthy air quality in the country right now because of Canadian wildfire smoke.

I have called on Canadian officials to get serious about proactive forest management.

Why are Wisconsin Democrats still silent?

— Rep. Tom Tiffany (@RepTiffany) July 31, 2025

According to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, which issues air quality alerts, Wisconsin will have been under an air quality alert for 8 consecutive days (through Tuesday). This beats the stretch of 4 consecutive days of air quality alerts in 2023. #wiwx pic.twitter.com/y3surqAy7a

— News 3 Now / Channel 3000 (@WISCTV_News3) August 4, 2025

Air quality alerts have been issued from Wisconsin to Maine as Canadian wildfire smoke has blanketed the sky from the Great Lakes across portions of the Northeast. https://t.co/gAJ7Yk6sOb pic.twitter.com/WCEAhKd5Mu

— AccuWeather (@accuweather) August 4, 2025

I want to see blue skies again, not choking on Canadian wildfire smoke.

CNN: Americans Not Worried About Climate Change

I love when CNN shows polls they hate showing…

Americans don’t care about climate change… and they had to admit it.

🤣🤣🤣🔥🔥🔥
pic.twitter.com/Xhy7XrfM13

— Tim Young (@TimRunsHisMouth) July 10, 2025

I'm not worried about climate change.

We know the climate changes.

Have you ever hiked the Ice Age Trail?

Did you know we have the Great Lakes because of climate change?

Climate change is not a disaster. It's nature, and it's beautiful.

1909 Shipwreck - Lake Superior

Michigan researchers discover eerie 1909 shipwreck at bottom of Lake Superior https://t.co/W3SIVJ8Qe1

— Fox News (@FoxNews) May 3, 2024

From FOX News:

Historians in Michigan recently announced that a shipwreck dating back more than a century has been discovered at the bottom of Lake Superior.

The Adella Shores, a wooden steamship built in 1894, was carrying salt to Duluth, Minnesota, when it mysteriously disappeared on May 1, 1909.

None of the ship's 14 sailors were ever heard from again, according to the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society (GLSHS), located in Paradise, Michigan.

...Historians in Michigan recently announced that a shipwreck dating back more than a century has been discovered at the bottom of Lake Superior.

The Adella Shores, a wooden steamship built in 1894, was carrying salt to Duluth, Minnesota, when it mysteriously disappeared on May 1, 1909.

None of the ship's 14 sailors were ever heard from again, according to the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society (GLSHS), located in Paradise, Michigan.

...Bruce E. Lynn, executive director of the GLSHS, told Fox News Digital that shipwrecks in the Great Lakes were more common than one might expect.

...Lynn said that there are between 6,000 and 10,000 shipwrecks in the Great Lakes. Many have not been discovered yet, but officials from the GLSHS have found 12 in the past three years.

Sturgeon Moon

Hey Moon, you’re looking pretty full. 🌕

August’s full moon is known as the “Sturgeon Moon”, named for the time of year when this giant fish was once abundant in the Great Lakes. pic.twitter.com/pL8oeittwh

— NASA Ames (@NASAAmes) August 1, 2023

A full moon rising over the Great Lakes on a clear summer night is spectacular.

Milwaukee - 414 Day

Happy Milwaukee Day! April 14 celebrates the city and all of its accomplishments. https://t.co/1eT5oucQMG

— FOX6 News (@fox6now) April 14, 2023

Let’s celebrate Milwaukee! https://t.co/XzxjBqSadz#414Day #MilwaukeeDay

— OnMilwaukee (@onmilwaukee) April 14, 2023

🎉 414 Day GIVEAWAY!

Enter to win limited edition Sprecher 414 Root Beer and 4 tour passes. Other prizes include Great Lakes Distillery tour passes and @mkepretzel pretzels & merch. We will ship this Milwaukee-themed prize pack nationally!

Enter Here: https://t.co/dKIMyev9Mf pic.twitter.com/0x5MyqDjOQ

— Sprecher Brewery (@sprecherbrewery) April 14, 2023

Happy 414 Day! 💙💛 Enjoy discounted admission for $4.14 today and join us for happy hour and a special 4.14 lb. burger in MOTOR Bar & Restaurant with our friends from @OnMilwaukee.

Tickets ➡️ https://t.co/FSM6jTgVkq #HDMuseum #HarleyDavidson #VisitMKE pic.twitter.com/06WUHZzB2u

— Harley-Davidson Museum (@hdmuseum) April 14, 2023

George "The Hamburger King" Webb has proudly served Milwaukee since 1948. Long before the now famous 12 game win prediction. We love you Milwaukee!#414day #MilwaukeeDay pic.twitter.com/hofvOAx3bk

— George Webb (@George_Webb) April 14, 2023

Happy 414 Day 🎉 We've had the best day celebrating around the city with @EXPMKE giving away Summerfest and @mkeadmirals tickets 🎟️

Huge s/o to our friends at @Wantablecafe, @MKEPublicMarket, @ShermanRising, and @3rdStMarketHall for hosting! pic.twitter.com/A0jnY80eqV

— Summerfest (@Summerfest) April 14, 2023

PHOTO OF THE DAY: Happy 414 day!

Share your favorite MKE snapshots with us below!

📍: Milwaukee, Wis.
📸: Michael Hoeppner Media pic.twitter.com/aNFfaezu27

— Spectrum News 1 Wisconsin (@SpectrumNews1WI) April 14, 2023

'Object' Shot Down Over Lake Huron, Activity Over Wisconsin

🚨#BREAKING: The FAA has closed air space for parts of lake, Michigan citing national defense pic.twitter.com/vFffDfijQH

— R A W S A L E R T S (@rawsalerts) February 12, 2023

pic.twitter.com/uI3kBZLZ4h

— North American Aerospace Defense Command (@NORADCommand) February 12, 2023

🚨#BREAKING: Canada has just Closed a section of Airspace over the Great Lakes and near the U.S/Canadian Border due to an “Active Air Defense Operation”. pic.twitter.com/NFCRR4ACCr

— R A W S A L E R T S (@rawsalerts) February 12, 2023

🚨#BREAKING: An F-16 shot down the object over Lake Huron The object was octagon shaped and was flying at an altitude of 20,000 ft, posing a threat to civilian air traffic. - WSJ

— R A W S A L E R T S (@rawsalerts) February 12, 2023

🚨#BREAKING: Biden Administration officials have found themselves issuing private assurances that there is no evidence that the objects involve extraterrestrial activity” pic.twitter.com/SbPUqUtaZy

— R A W S A L E R T S (@rawsalerts) February 12, 2023

What is going on?

"Objects" cannot be shot down daily over U.S. territory without some sort of explanation from the U.S. government. Biden needs to address this now.

One more thing -- Last evening, near Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport, there was a lot of unusual air and helicopter activity in the area. I have no idea if this was related to the "object" or another possible "object." I couldn't find any traffic or police operations that would have accounted for the activity. I found no explanation in any news reports.

It was noticeable because it was so unusual, lasting for hours.

Just found this --

Originally thought to be Returning to Base the U.S. Air Force E-3B Sentry appears to now be doing “Racetracks” in an attempt to either Detect or Identify something over Central Wisconsin which is extremely weird in my personal opinion. pic.twitter.com/zgDSFhpnr0

— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) February 12, 2023

Lake Erie Same Rights as Human Being

America: You know there’s a problem when lakes have more rights than humans before birth.

“Under the measure, residents are granted the right to take legal action on behalf of the lake when its right to "flourish and naturally evolve" has been violated.” https://t.co/KvMmH7xSUZ

— Lila Rose (@LilaGraceRose) March 3, 2019

There is no way I would support granting our lake, Lake Michigan, the same legal rights as people.

It's a great lake but, you know, it's a lake.

Lomira High School Wrestling Team Shovels Snow

The Lomira High School wrestling team has been out helping those who need assistance shoveling pic.twitter.com/Mq6VTsac4l

— WISN 12 NEWS (@WISN12News) January 28, 2019

These kids aren't snowflakes.

Great job!

Monster Winter Storm: 100 Million People

This is a big one.

From FOX News:

Midwesterners accustomed to dealing with snow, sleet and ice have readied themselves for a monster winter storm that could be bigger than many cities in the nation's midsection have seen in years.

Despite dire warnings of a potentially deadly storm predicted to affect a third of the country -- some 100 million -- people seemed even a little excited at the prospect of dealing with the kind of weather that has pounded the Northeast in one of that region's most brutal winters. Others headed to stores Monday to pick up everything from snow shovels and backup generators to bottled water and bread as the first flakes and freezing rain began to fall on parts of the region.

"EXCITED"?

I don't know any adult "excited" about this storm.

There's nothing "exciting" about a paralyzing blizzard.

"I'm looking forward to it. I'm a school teacher, and we'll probably get a snow day -- and it'll be the first time in a couple of years," said Katy Berman, 58, of the Chicago suburb of Des Plaines, Illinois. "It doesn't faze me as long as I'm home."

I'd gladly give up a snow day to avoid plowing out from under two feet of snow.

This Illinois school teacher must not have to shovel. How can you not be fazed by a massive storm like this?

...Cities including St. Louis, Kansas City and Milwaukee could be hardest hit, with expected midweek snowfalls of up to 2 feet and drifts piled 5 to 10 feet. Even hardy Chicago could be in for its third-worst blizzard since record-keeping began, with forecasts calling for up to 20 inches of snow in the city and waves whipping off Lake Michigan.

"When everything is said and done, the storm may well impact a third of the population of the United States; approximately 100 million people," meteorologist Tim Ballisty wrote on weather.com.

At Edele and Mertz Hardware just a few blocks from the Anheuser-Busch brewery in St. Louis, customers lined up by 7 a.m. Monday waiting for the store to open. Snow shovels, ice melt and salt were all big sellers.

"`Freaking out' is a great way of putting it," employee Steve Edele said. "The icing -- that's what scares people."

In St. Louis and much of Missouri, residents braced for a particularly hazardous mix: up to an inch of ice, followed by 3 to 4 inches of sleet, then perhaps a half-foot of snow or more. Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon declared a state of emergency and activated 600 members of the National Guard.

Drivers were already sliding off slick roads even before the worst of the storm had arrived, with deadly accidents reported in Minnesota and Kansas.

I'm not "freaking out," but I am dreading this.

Ice is the worst and we'll be avoiding that.

People die as a result of storms like this. It's such a dangerous situation.

With the storm expected to affect a huge swath of the country, the National Weather Service suggested any Green Bay Packers fans planning to drive from Wisconsin to Dallas for the Super Bowl avoid leaving before Wednesday afternoon, when authorities hope to have cleaned up the worst of the mess along the route.

"As long as I have 18 hours, I'm going to get there," said 68-year-old Don Zuidmulder, who planned to fly out on Thursday. "I'll crawl if I have to."

If I had Super Bowl tickets, I, too, would crawl to get there.

Don Zuidmulder should have time to get to Dallas. It's not as if New York's Mayor Bloomberg is responsible for clearing roads.

At least having the Super Bowl to look forward to is a very bright spot in this nightmare beginning to February.

MMSD: 506 Million Gallons of Sewage

This is a staggering and stinking figure.

Last Thursday and Friday, MMSD dumped 506 million gallons of untreated sewage into Lake Michigan and nearby waterways.

For some perspective on the enormity of that amount of crap being directed into the lake, consider how much oil has leaked into the Gulf of Mexico following the accident on the Deepwater Horizon rig. One estimate puts the gallons of oil spilled so far at 92,340,117.

Since April 20, over 92 million gallons of oil have fouled the Gulf.

Last Thursday and Friday, MMSD dumped 506 millions of filth into the lake.

That's an environmental disaster.

From the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

The third, and largest, combined sanitary and storm sewer overflow of 2010 spilled an estimated 506 million gallons of untreated wastewater into local rivers and Lake Michigan on Thursday and Friday, Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District officials said Monday.

The overflow volume is nearly equal to the total 521 million gallons of storage available in the district's main deep tunnel and northwest side tunnel.

Combined sewer overflows began early Thursday as the district's main tunnel quickly filled during intense rain storms, the district says in a report to the state Department of Natural Resources. A gauge in the 3600 block of W. Fond du Lac Ave. measured 5.6 inches of rain Thursday, exceeding the threshold for a storm that has only a 1% chance of occurring in any year.

Overflows began after gates connecting combined sewers in central Milwaukee and eastern Shorewood to the main tunnel were ordered closed at 1:20 a.m. Thursday, the report says.

The emergency step was taken to reserve space in the tunnel for wastewater flows from communities served by separate sanitary sewers. Overflows reduce the risk of sewage backups into basements.

A June 15 rain storm resulted in combined sewer overflows of 23.6 million gallons. A brief combined sewer overflow on July 7 discharged 1.65 million gallons of a sewage and storm water mix to waterways.

The main deep tunnel filled nearly to capacity by 9 a.m. Thursday so gates connecting separate sanitary sewers to the tunnel were closed, resulting in sanitary sewer overflows.

The 5.6 inches of rain cited in the Journal Sentinel story is a bit misleading. I don't question the accuracy of that total being recorded at that particular gauge, but that amount of rainfall doesn't represent the amounts recorded throughout the area.

Here's a list of rain totals from July 14 and 15, 2010:

5.0"...Milwaukee-northwest side-Sherman Blvd...830am
5.0"...Pewaukee (Waukesha co.)...800am
4.8"...Wauwatosa (Milwaukee co.)...900am
4.6"...Brookfield (Waukesha co.)...730am
4.5"...2 mile SE Timmerman Airport...800am
4.5"...New Berlin (Waukesha co.)...800am
4.5"...Delafield (Waukesha co.)...1000am)
4.4"...Menomonee Falls (Waukesha co.)...900am
4.4"...Slinger (Washington co.)...930am
4.4"...Jackson (Washington co.)...600am
4.3"...Hartland (Waukesha co.)...1030am
4.2"...Oconomowoc (Waukesha co.)...700am
4.2"...1 mile north Watertown (Dodge co.)...700am
4.2"...Hustisford (Dodge co.)...900am
4.1"...Fredonia (Ozaukee co.)...730am
4.1"...Merton (Waukesha co.)...1000am
4.1"...Holy Hill (Washington co.)...600am
4.0"...TODAY'S TMJ4 (Milwaukee co.)...715am
4.0"...Newburg (Washington co.)...800am
3.9"...West Bend (Washington co.)...700am
3.9"...Hartford (Washington co.)...900am
3.7"...Germantown (Washington co.)...900am
3.6"...Merton (Waukesha co.)...700am
3.6"...Cedar Grove (Sheboygan co.)...930am
3.5"...Saukville (Ozaukee co.)...600am
3.5"...Allenton (Washington co.)...700am
3.5"...Waterloo (Jefferson co.)...700am
3.5"...Elkhart Lake (Sheboygan co.)...800am
3.4"...Richfield (Wshington co.)...700am
3.4"...Beaver Dam (Dodge co.)...900am
3.4"...Horicon (Dodge co.)...700am
3.3"...Waukesha (Waukesha co.)...700am
3.2"...St. Francis (Milwaukee co.)...1000am
3.2"...5 mile SW Campbellsport (Washington co.)...700am
3.2"...Sullivan NWS (Jefferson co.)...700am
3.2"...Waupun (Dodge co.)...1000am
3.1"...West Allis (Milwaukee co.)...700am
3.1"...South Milwaukee (Milwaukee co.)...915am
3.0"...Greenfield (Milwaukee co.)...830am
3.0"...Mequon (Ozaukee co.)...930am
3.0"...Port Washington (Ozaukee co.)...730am
3.0"...Big Bend (Waukesha co.)...715am
2.9"...Fond du Lac (Fond du Lac co.)...700am
2.8"...Genesee (Waukesha co.)...1000am
2.8"...Sheboygan Falls (Sheboygan co.)...930am
2.8"...Taycheedah (Fond du Lac co.)...600am
2.7"...Mitchell Int'l Airport (Milwaukee co.)...700am
2.5"...Sheboygan (Sheboygan co.)...600am
2.0"...Madison (Dane co.)...700am
0.4"...4 mile S Whitewater (Walworth co.)...1000am

Without a doubt, that's a lot of rain, but it's not as if the 5-inch plus rain totals were the norm.

The massive 506 million gallon dump event is amazing.

On Thursday and Friday alone, the amount of untreated wastewater, SEWAGE, intentionally poured into Lake Michigan was 5 times the amount of oil that has spilled into the Gulf since April 20.

It's sickening that Russ Feingold and Tom Barrett are running campaign commercials, posturing as the protectors of the Great Lakes and standing up to the oil companies, while they turn a blind eye to the 506 million gallon dump.

Is anyone else as horrified by this sewage spill as I am?

This was no accident. This, supposedly, is the Deep Tunnel working as it should be.

Is this just business as usual for southeastern Wisconsin?

Where's the outrage?
_________________

UPDATE: Make that 674 million gallons.

Barrett and Untreated Sewage and Feingold

Three things in life are certain: death, taxes, and MMSD dumping sewage into Lake Michigan.

Tom Barrett has been the mayor of Milwaukee since 2004. I wonder what the grand total is of the gallons of sewage dumped into the lake and local waterways on Barrett's watch.

Did you know that Barrett is an environmentalist?

He won an award for his Green Fleet, although he does use a car for campaigning that has a suspended registration because it hasn't passed a required emissions test.

Barrett also brags about protecting the Great Lakes. He won't let BP drill and foul the "pristine" shorelines of Lake Michigan.

By the way, I wonder when the beaches will be closed after the heavy rain of yesterday and this morning.

There will be closures and warnings. That's a given.

As we speak, freshwater fouled by the dumping of untreated sewage is gently lapping on those "pristine" shorelines Barrett allegedly guards.

From the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

Overflows of untreated sewage from sanitary sewers to local streams and rivers throughout the Milwaukee metropolitan area began shortly after 9 a.m. Thursday as the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District's deep tunnels filled nearly to capacity, officials said.

The main tunnels filled to 98.6% of their 432 million gallon capacity by 9 a.m. Thursday, after overnight thunderstorms dropped more than 4 inches of rain throughout the metropolitan area, records show.

At 9:05 a.m., MMSD Executive Director Kevin Shafer ordered the closing of all gates connecting separate sanitary sewers throughout the district's service area to the tunnel. The closings cause sanitary sewer overflows in an attempt to prevent sewer backups into basements, Shafer said.

During overflows, most of the wastewater in the pipes continues to flow to the district's Jones Island and South Shore treatment plants.

The northwest side deep tunnel, which receives flows only from outlying suburban communities, had filled to nearly 60% of its 89 million gallon capacity shortly before 9 a.m. and was continuing to accept wastewater.

The district serves 28 communities in a 411-square-mile service area.

At 1:20 a.m., Shafer closed gates connecting combined sanitary and storm sewers to the tunnel, resulting in combined sewer overflows in central Milwaukee and eastern Shorewood to local rivers and Lake Michigan. The combined sewer overflows were ordered in an attempt to reserve space in the tunnels for wastewater flows from communities with separate sanitary sewers.

Barrett should take a dip in the lake at South Shore, go for a nice swim.

He's so concerned about protecting the Great Lakes from the evil oil industry. Surely, Barrett wouldn't stand by while millions of gallons of sewage pour into this priceless natural resource.

Russ Feingold, too. He should join Barrett for a day at the beach. He's running a TV ad claiming that he'll protect the lake from the oil companies, the environmental rapists. (Russ, of course, is wearing one of his trademark plaid shirts in the ad.) Feingold makes the absurd claim that his opponent Ron Johnson is "willing to hand over the Great Lakes to the oil companies, threatening Wisconsin's economy and a way of life for generations of Wisconsin families."

That, of course, is an oily lie, flat-out false.

What's Feingold doing to keep Lake Michigan from being used as sewer? At the very least, he could post a "NO DUMPING" sign.



Obviously, Dems are hoping to exploit the public's anger at BP. What else can they run on?

Swim in it, Tom and Russ.
_____________________

Ron Johnson has responded to Feingold's mudslinging, setting the record straight.

Obama's Asian Carp Czar

Russ Feingold and Herb Kohl and some of their colleagues are asking Obama to declare war on Asian carp. They want Obama to "create a 'commander' to fight the carp 'battle.'"

In short, they want to appear "fully engaged" and they think they can accomplish this by asking Obama to appoint a carp czar.

From the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

Federal agents committed to protecting Lake Michigan from an Asian carp invasion have been saying for months they would not be 100% convinced they have an imminent problem until they actually found a carp above an electric barrier built to keep the fish out of the lake.

Well, now they've got a problem - and the attention of the region's most powerful politicians.

On Tuesday, a single 20-pound bighead carp was found above the electric barrier in the Chicago canal system, about six miles south of Lake Michigan.

And on Friday, a group of 12 U.S. senators, including Wisconsin's Russ Feingold and Herb Kohl, sent a letter to President Barack Obama urging him to create a "commander" to fight the carp "battle."

Illinois Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin introduced a bill Friday that would require the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to speed up a study exploring what was unthinkable only a few years ago - what it would take to once again physically separate Lake Michigan from the Mississippi basin.

That separation was destroyed over 100 years ago when Chicago reversed its namesake river so it flushed the city's waste away from its drinking water intake pipes in Lake Michigan, into the Mississippi basin and ultimately down to the Gulf of Mexico.

"We have to do everything in our power to stop this invasive species from entering Lake Michigan," Durbin said. "We have to go at this as if we were at war. The viability of the Great Lakes is at stake."

Biologists have been saying for years that the only true solution to keep Asian carp - or any other aquatic invasive species - from spilling between Lake Michigan and the Mississippi basin is to construct a barrier in the canal system. Such a barrier would have tremendous implications for the way cargo moves through the system.

Still, most agree this "hydrological separation" could be accomplished. The question is how, and how much it would cost.

Congress previously instructed the Army Corps to begin a separation study, but the agency's pace - that study isn't due to be finished until 2012 at the earliest - evidently isn't fast enough for Durbin.

He wants an initial report done in 180 days and the final report completed in 18 months.

Army Corps Maj. General John Peabody said Friday he appreciates the politicians' sense of urgency.

"No one wants to expedite it more than me," Peabody said just before Durbin released his bill.

"I want to go as fast as possible, but there is a limit to how fast you can go," Peabody said. "I can promise you, I am riding the horse as fast as the horse can go."

Now that horse is feeling the spurs of the region's senators.

"We cannot afford to further delay our efforts to prevent the Asian carp from devastating an important sector of Wisconsin's economy, as well as our treasured Great Lakes," Feingold said. "All options to stop these carp must be on the table, and I have supported a host of efforts to do just that. As agencies at all levels of government, as well as private sector efforts, continue to work to contain the carp, a point person is critical to make sure efforts run smoothly and effectively."

This is just political posturing by Feingold and friends. It's way too little, way too late.

Suddenly, there's a sense of urgency. There must be a carp czar to oversee and coordinate efforts to protect the Great Lakes. NOW!

What's frustrating about this is that warning signs were ignored. There was sort of a "What, me worry?" approach to the problem that was guaranteed to fail.

"[C]onservationists and politicians alike have characterized [the carp invasion] as a slow-motion ecological disaster decades in the making."

That's inexcusable. Our only hope?

OBAMA TO THE RESCUE!

Really?

I have no faith whatsoever in Obama and the government to manage this potential crisis.

Other than appoint a carp czar, which is as good as doing nothing, what will Obama do?

He's not going to suck the carp out of the lake with a straw. He can't dive in and construct a barrier.

I suppose he could promise to find an ass to kick, if he can find the ass on an Asian carp.