Hell hath no fury like an Ohioan scorned. Buckeye State lawmakers, including House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio), are furious at President Obama's decision to change the name of Alaska's tallest peak from Mount McKinley to Denali, the mountain's native Athabascan name. Though Alaskans have referred to the mountain as Denali for years, and have had a request to change its name in the works since 1975, Ohioans are angry that the 25th president of the United States and native Ohioan will no longer take claim to the storied peak.
"I am deeply disappointed by this decision," Boehner said, adding that the mountain's title had been a "testament to [McKinley's] great legacy."
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"We must retain this national landmark's name in order to honor the legacy of this great American president and patriot," Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) agreed.
"The 25th president gets overlooked too much already. Would hope the president would find another appropriate way to honor McKinley." Karl Rove — not a native Ohioan — told Politico's Playbook. (Rove likely had a personal motivation for complaint, since his book on President McKinley comes out this fall).
Many Alaskans, however, are pleased with the decision. "I'll just point out that there's a lot of things in Ohio that are already named after McKinley," Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) told The Los Angeles Times. "This is no affront to our former president; this is all about ensuring that respect for the land and respect for the native people of the region is afforded."
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