President Donald Trump on Tuesday floated the idea of renaming Lake Ontario to “Lake America,” amid escalating tensions between the U.S. and Canada.
“The United States is giving serious consideration to changing the name of Lake Ontario to Lake America in that we don’t expect to be doing much business with Ontario any longer,” Trump said in a Truth Social post.
Later that morning, he shared on social media an image of a map depicting the lake, with a red X over “Lake Ontario” and the words “Lake America” above it in large gold letters next to a U.S. flag.
Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes in North America, which together compose the largest freshwater system in the world. It borders the Canadian province of Ontario, which was named after the lake, as well as the U.S. state of New York.
Trump’s threat to rename the lake is reminiscent of his previous push to call the Gulf of Mexico the “Gulf of America.”
It is possible that Trump could order the U.S. federal government to refer to Lake Ontario as “Lake America,” but he cannot require other nations to adhere to the change. When he signed an Executive Order last year to call the Gulf of Mexico the “Gulf of America,” the directive only applied to the U.S. federal government, and other nations continue to refer to the body of water as the Gulf of Mexico. Many other entities—such as The Associated Press, which sets style guidelines that many news outlets follow—have also stuck to the original name for the gulf.
The U.S. and Canada also have a 1989 agreement regarding the coordination of names for geographical features shared between the two nations, which emphasizes the importance of both sides using the same name for the same feature “where culturally acceptable,” and says that “it is highly desirable to retain established official names.” According to the document, a name change could be considered “for purpose of conformance to strong local usage or citizen preference, or on special request with strong specific reasons.”
The origin of the lake’s name, which derives from Indigenous words referring to the lake, predates the founding of both countries.
Trump’s threat to rename Lake Ontario comes after trade talks between the U.S. and Canada broke down on Friday. The following day, the Trump Administration’s 50% tariffs on about $20 billion worth of imported Canadian goods went into effect. On Tuesday, Canada announced that it would impose retaliatory levies—reaching as high as 50% on some items—starting on Sept. 8.
Both countries have blamed the other for trade negotiations collapsing. In a statement on Friday, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney accused the U.S. of wanting “last-minute changes” to the trade deal that he said were “unfair, uneconomic, and called into question the reliability of any deal.”
“In short, they asked too much and they offered too little,” Carney said at a press conference on Saturday.
Trump, meanwhile, has accused Canada of “‘Ripping Off’ the U.S.A. for decades,” calling the northern neighbor “difficult and unreasonable.”
In the days since, tensions have continued to rise between the two allied nations. Trump on Monday threatened to raise automobile tariffs on Canada to 50% beginning in 2027. He’s continued to hurl barbs at Canada, referring to its Prime Minister as “Governor Carney”—a remark that Trump has made before, and one that hints at comments he has made in the past suggesting that he wants to annex the country. At a political event on Monday, U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance called Canada a “state,” before claiming it was a “Freudian slip.”
When asked about Trump’s threat to rename Lake Ontario, the province’s Premier Doug Ford said on CNN on Tuesday that he thought it was “a lot of rhetoric” and emphasized the strong trading ties between Ontario and many U.S. states.
“We’re strong believers in being a sovereign country, and when President Trump wants to attack our sovereignty and attack our businesses and people in Ontario, I can’t roll over,” he continued. “My job is to protect Ontario and Canada, and ironically, protecting the American people.”
Canadian Minister Dominic LeBlanc, who oversees trade with the U.S., was also asked about Trump’s Truth Social posts on CNBC, and replied: “We’ve decided as a federal government months ago not to respond to sort of the daily social media posts of either the President or his Cabinet secretaries and so on. We’re focused on doing what we can in Canada to build our economy and to having a constructive relationship with the government of the United States, our most important trading partner.”
Not even a year ago, state leaders of all stripes were clamoring for data centers, the A.I.-warehouses of the future. Incentives here. Promises of infrastructure there. Sweetheart deals all around. But as voters started to view the centers as a resource suck and potentially job killers, sentiment moved quicker than a ChatGPT prompt; between March and July, public opinion shifted 12 points against new data centers, according to one national poll.
The result has been a massive reset of assumptions about the wisdom of these campuses of computing power. The backlash is stealthily turning midterm elections across the country into referendums on anxieties about an economy overrun by A.I., and specifically the role of those data centers that appear to be sending both electricity bills and NIMBY-ism spiking. The shift also sets in motion a messy collision between the GOP candidates adjusting to voter sentiment and the parochial whims of their party leader.
In Texas, Republican Ken Paxton rolled out a proposal on Monday to block data centers that could use Chinese technology and hold data centers responsible if those automated A.I. bots “undermine children’s safety.” It was the latest sign this month of Republicans in the red state recalibrating on the issue, following Gov. Greg Abbott’s announcement of a pause on new data centers—after calling his state the “epicenter of AI development” in November.
In Michigan, GOP Senate nominee Mike Rogers last week called for a one-year moratorium on new data centers after earlier supporting their construction. His opponent, Abdul El-Sayed, has called for data centers to cover their own power costs, limit water consumption, and work with local communities to give them a “meaningful say.” El-Sayed previously said Michigan shouldn’t move forward with such projects until there were “federal-level guardrails.”
And in Florida, Rep. Byron Donalds, widely seen as the state’s next Governor after winning this month’s Republican primary, dumped more than $2 million on just one ad in his primary promising to “protect” the state from data centers. It was a stunning reversal from just a few weeks earlier, when Donalds mocked opponents of the data centers as yesteryear nostalgists. “There ain’t no bans coming,” he said.
You’re not imagining the whiplash. President Donald Trump has remained a cheerleader for the data centers, seeing the prospect of high-powered computer chips cementing U.S. dominance across all industries. It also hasn’t hurt that the Trump administration has extracted ownership stakes in semiconductor companies in exchange for funds allocated during President Joe Biden’s term.
"Communities that don't take a data center, they're making a mistake,” Trump said of the swelling number of localities banning such sites during an interview last week.
It usually goes poorly for Republican candidates running counter to Trump. But on this issue, Trump's position will only make it tougher for Republicans to convince voters that they are really willing to push back on the A.I. buildout.
But it’s not just Republicans facing heat on the issue. In Wisconsin, the Republican nominee for Governor, Rep. Tom Tiffany, has labeled his Democratic opponent “Data Center David Crowley” and has been highlighting his own opposition to Wisconsin’s tax incentives for data centers. Crowley has tried to underscore the need for a balanced approach to the issue. As Crowley told me just this month before he won his primary: “All data centers are not all created equal.”
And in Pennsylvania, Republican Stacy Garrity, the state Treasurer running for Governor, recently backed a temporary moratorium on new data centers, after saying earlier this year that Pennsylvania should welcome more of them. Garrity’s new approach is actually a click further than incumbent Gov. Josh Shapiro, who last year touted an Amazon data center as the largest investment in state history, but has since revoked fast-track approval for new data warehouses. Garrity is now hitting Shapiro for welcoming “data centers in our backyards.”
Ohio may be where the data center backlash is playing the most visible role in a topline Senate race, as Sen. Jon Husted is trailing the Democrat, former Sen. Sherrod Brown.
“More than any other thing in this race, data centers are the anchor hanging around Husted’s neck,” Senate Republicans’ campaign arm wrote in a memo last week first reported by Axios.
In one ad, Brown casts the data-center spree as a consequence of Husted’s advocacy when he worked as the state’s Lieutenant Governor. “Husted is a chief reason Ohio has so many of those centers,” the ad says. “He force-fed the massive energy-sucking facilities.”
Brown’s strategy here dovetails neatly into his long-standing reputation as a working-class champion, with data centers serving as physical manifestations of an A.I. revolution that is poised to cost workers’ jobs, concentrate power in the hands of the elite, and feed tech oligarchs who do not have middle-class worries at the fore.
The memo continues: “Brown is using it because it works.”
In the Senate, Husted has introduced legislation to encourage states to require companies to pay for their own power and ensure that the cost of new transmission infrastructure is not passed on to consumers.
To be clear, the leaked memo was the campaign equivalent of putting out a Bat Signal to deep-pocketed and influential A.I. players to do something, and fast, to counteract this backlash. If the industry doesn’t get the message, it may find itself fighting this with far fewer allies heading into the 2028 presidential cycle.
"If [Husted] loses and data centers get the blame, politicians across the country will take notices—and they will not go near the next one," the memo warns.
It’s not just the Senate race where data centers are dominating Ohio politics. In an unexpectedly close contest for Governor, Republican Vivek Ramaswamy has adopted a tough stance against free-riding data centers and thrown in one more populist proposal: “If a data center is built in your community, then … you will no longer have to pay for your home’s electricity.” The tech investor is running against Amy Acton, a former state health chief who has her own raft of demands for tech centers, including mandatory union workers.
The speed with which the tech industry has moved to build out their computing power is quickly bumping up against the speed of communities now banning them. Last month alone saw 150 localities banning such data centers, bringing the total north of 500, according to the tracking project by The Information.
There are roughly 1,600 data centers in the United States these days by one count. They consume 4% of total U.S. electric consumption. The biggest hub is Virginia, with 184 sites—using enough electricity to serve 2.3 million homes, according to a Tyler, Texas,-based consulting firm that tracks the industry. Eisenbach Consulting’s tracking estimates a full 25% of Virginia’s energy now goes to data centers.
The math gets fuzzy fast, though. Some counts put it at more than 3,000 data centers nationally with another 1,500 on deck. It’s that uncertainty that has helped make the murky topic even more potent for those who view the data center buildout as akin to a virus spreading across the heartland. (If one company has two warehouses on the same street, are they even separate?)
Faced with the combined threats of resource depletion, higher energy costs, and potential job losses to motherboards, it’s no wonder this tech revolution has voters seeing a scary future.
In politics, it’s seldom a bad instinct to find a villain and throw everything against it. But candidates doing a total 180 in the span of weeks may leave voters questioning its sincerity, especially when Trump has shown no willingness to join the spin.
Two people in Pennsylvania have died from measles, marking the first reported deaths from the disease in the U.S. this year.
The Pennsylvania Department of Health said on Tuesday, Aug. 25, that the two people who died were unvaccinated and lived in Lancaster County, the epicenter of a statewide measles outbreak that has sickened hundreds.
No additional information has been released about the two people who died. State health officials said the deaths are the first measles-associated fatalities in Pennsylvania in 35 years.
“Because measles was largely eliminated in the [state] for more than three decades, people are not familiar with this disease and don’t fully understand the potential severity of the illness,” said Dr. Debra Bogen, Pennsylvania’s health secretary, in a statement.
More than 2,700 measles cases have been reported in the U.S. this year—the highest number of cases since the disease was considered eliminated in the country in 2000. In just the past two years, the U.S. has recorded more measles cases than it did from 2000 through 2024 combined.
Measles is a highly contagious viral disease that can cause high fever, a tell-tale rash, cough, and other symptoms. The disease can be mild for some, but about one in four people sickened with measles is hospitalized. Young children, pregnant women, and the elderly are among those who are at risk of more severe disease.
No specific treatment for measles exists. The measles vaccine—delivered as a combination measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) shot series—is 97% effective at preventing the disease and lowers the risk of complications if someone is infected.
“As a physician, I want to make sure that people understand that the MMR vaccine is safe and provides the best protection we have against measles,” said Bogen.
Within communities, a vaccination rate of above 95% is considered ideal for robust herd immunity against measles. The national MMR vaccination rate among kindergarteners surpassed 95% in the 2019-2020 school year, but it has been declining ever since, according to U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data. In 2025-2026, MMR vaccination coverage was just 92.4% nationally, and about 93% in Pennsylvania. In Lancaster County, home of the largest Amish settlement in the country, the vaccination rate was under 88%. An estimated 25% of the Amish population in Lancaster County is vaccinated against measles, according to the Association of Immunization Managers, an organization of state and local immunization officials.
Vaccination rates began notably declining in the U.S. during the COVID pandemic and have continued dropping amid increasing anti-vaccine rhetoric and policy under the Trump Administration. On Aug. 10, President Donald Trump signed an executive order that called for U.S. children to receive fewer vaccines and ordered the MMR vaccine to be split into three separate shots, despite a lack of scientific evidence to back the changes.
“Together, there could be a possibility they’re quite lethal,” Trump said of the combined shot, which has been in use for more than 50 years and has a strong safety and efficacy record.
Doctors and vaccine scientists said Trump’s executive order and comments were unscientific and misleading. "As measles cases reach a 35-year high in the U.S. and with cold and flu season quickly approaching, [the] executive order on vaccines is not only disheartening but dangerous,” Dr. Andrew Racine, president of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), said in a statement at the time.
The CDC and the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend that all children get two doses of the MMR vaccine, starting with the first dose at 12 through 15 months of age.
An additional early dose of the vaccine can also be given to children aged 6 to 11 months under some circumstances, says Dr. Elizabeth Murray, a pediatric emergency medicine physician in Rochester, N.Y. “With the ongoing measles outbreak, make sure your children are immunized. If your child is under age 1, talk to your doctor. Depending on how much measles is circulating where you live, your doctor may recommend an earlier dose,” she says.
The CDC also advises adults who haven’t been immunized against measles or who are unsure about their vaccination status to get the vaccine. The agency recommends that people who were vaccinated before 1968 with an older version of the shot get at least one dose of the vaccine in use now, which is more effective.
For people fully vaccinated after 1968, however, there is no need to get a booster, the CDC says, as two doses of the vaccine should offer adequate, lifelong protection.
When the NFL season kicks off next month, millions of Americans will gather around their televisions to watch athletes of comic book proportions crash into each other at breathtaking speeds. Inevitably, those players’ heads will smash into each other, leaving them dazed on the field. And according to a major new study, these repeated head-on collisions may eventually lead to a degenerative brain disease for many — if not most — of the players long after they’ve left the field.
For years now, America has been reckoning with the tension between its love for football and the growing evidence of its dangers. Those concerns can be boiled down to three letters: CTE, or chronic traumatic encephalopathy, which is the progressive brain disease that can lead to dementia, depression, suicide, and other serious mental health problems.
One major question over the past 20 years has been: Exactly how often does playing football lead to CTE? What are the risks for peewee players versus pros? How quickly does the brain deteriorate once the disease takes hold? And new research, published this week in BMJ, has provided us with some staggering answers. After analyzing the death records for hundreds of former NFL players, the co-authors concluded that at least 25 percent of the former players who died between 2016 and 2021 had CTE at the time of their death.
And the actual prevalence could be much higher, but more players’ brains would have to be given over to scientists for a CTE assessment for us to know for sure. Because among the 338 players whose brains were donated and studied, the CTE rate was an astonishing 93 percent. The question is, according to the researchers: Is that percentage skewed because the players exhibiting CTE symptoms were more likely to offer up their brain for research? Or, as the authors suggest is possible, is the real CTE rate closer to 90 percent? Only further research will be able to tell us, but even the latest estimate — one in four — is cause for concern.
It’s a stark reminder of football’s risks, delivered right on the cusp of a new season for pro, college, and high school teams around the country. And according to the Aspen Institute’s annual State of Play report, there are signs that the game’s future may actually be at risk.
More and more American parents are steering their kids away from tackle football. How long can an elite league like the NFL last when the pool of players is getting smaller and smaller — at the same time the scientific evidence of its dangers is becoming clearer and clearer?
Despite the latest research, the NFL is going to be fine in the short term. Professional football is the biggest TV show in the country: Last year, 83 of the top 100 rated TV shows were NFL games, up from 72 in 2024. The next Super Bowl will almost certainly attract more than 100 million viewers and end up the single most-watched TV program in the US for the whole year. Football is one thing that transcends politics in an increasingly polarized America.
But with each new piece of evidence about the physical and mental costs of playing football, football’s long-term dominance looks less and less certain. Already, if you dig into the trend lines for youth participation, they reveal a real threat to the sport’s future.
Let’s start with the good news for football enthusiasts: Flag football has become more and more popular among kids, supported by investments and promotion by the NFL itself and expert consensus that it’s much safer than tackle, especially when it comes to head injuries. According to the Aspen Institute’s State of Play survey, flag football participation among kids ages 6 to 12 grew by 13.6 percent from 2019 to 2024, while tackle football play dropped 7 percent among the same age group over that time.
But it’s participation among the next age group that may be most revealing. According to the Aspen Institute, tackle football participation rates among Americans ages 13 to 17 — the prime age for middle school and high school teams — decreased 9 percent from 2019 to 2024. It has even fallen behind tennis among the teenage cohort. Many of the tweens who play flag football may never strap on a helmet to play tackle.
Even if fewer kids play tackle football year over year, the sport may still subsist on its promises of upward mobility for people who come from poorer backgrounds. With the recent introduction of compensation for college players, elite athletes can make millions of dollars in income before they even reach the NFL. It may be no surprise, then, that the young people still playing tackle football are more likely to be lower-income and live in conservative states.
Another study found that Black and Hispanic parents, who on average earn less money than their white counterparts, are more likely to see football as a path to college scholarship or even a professional career; the Washington Post reported in 2023 that the proportion of white players at the college level is falling while the percentage of Black players is rising. Football players are often thought of as modern gladiators: participants disproportionately from lower classes aspiring to riches and glory in a violent game for the viewing pleasure of the general public. That’s becoming more and more true as we learn more about its dangers.
As the annual hoopla around the NFL kickoff makes clear, football’s cultural dominance remains unrivaled among professional sports. But this new study has left even me, a lifelong football fan, wondering how much longer it can, and should, last.
Dolly Parton, the country music legend behind hits like “Jolene” and “9 to 5,” as well as an actress, businesswoman, fashion icon, and philanthropist, died on Tuesday. She was 80.
Her death was announced in a video featuring her nephew, Bryan Seaver, that was shared on Parton’s social media accounts. Seaver didn’t disclose a cause of death in the video, but Parton’s publicist later told news outlets in a statement that Parton died after a “brief battle with cancer.”
In the video, Seaver said that his aunt “has lived in the light and is in the arms of Jesus, surely met by” her loved ones, including her husband Carl Dean, who died last year, as well as her parents and “countless others who have watched her and longed for her to meet them in the heavens.”
“She never saw a door she couldn’t open, and the doors she opened made and changed history,” Seaver said. “My family and I have shared a lifetime of beautiful memories with Dolly, but so have you. She has always been on your television, your record player, your CD, and on your phone playlist, becoming an extended part of your family whether you liked it or not.”
Read More: Dolly Parton Loved Us All, Darlin'
Purchase a copy of the Dolly Parton cover here
Dolly Parton, the country music legend behind hits like “Jolene” and “9 to 5,” as well as an actress, businesswoman, fashion icon, and philanthropist, died on Tuesday. She was 80.
Her death was announced in a video featuring her nephew, Bryan Seaver, that was shared on Parton’s social media accounts. Seaver didn’t disclose a cause of death in the video, but Parton’s publicist later told news outlets in a statement that Parton died after a “brief battle with cancer.”
In the video, Seaver said that his aunt “has lived in the light and is in the arms of Jesus, surely met by” her loved ones, including her husband Carl Dean, who died last year, as well as her parents and “countless others who have watched her and longed for her to meet them in the heavens.”
“She never saw a door she couldn’t open, and the doors she opened made and changed history,” Seaver said. “My family and I have shared a lifetime of beautiful memories with Dolly, but so have you. She has always been on your television, your record player, your CD, and on your phone playlist, becoming an extended part of your family whether you liked it or not.”
Read More: Dolly Parton Loved Us All, Darlin'
A statement shared on Parton’s social media page said Parton “died peacefully today in Nashville.” The statement referenced her decades-long legacy in both music and philanthropy. It also said that a small, private funeral service will be held for Parton’s immediate family, per her wishes, while it encouraged fans to share tributes to Parton online.
Parton’s family also asked that, instead of flowers, people who wish to express their condolences donate to Parton’s Imagination Library, a program that mails books to children for free. Parton founded the initiative in 1995 in her home state of Tennessee, and it has since expanded to other states and even internationally, donating hundreds of millions of books worldwide.
“I am as proud of the Imagination Library,” Parton told PBS News in 2020, “as I ever will be, anything I ever do for the rest of my life.”
Last year, fans expressed concerns about the state of Parton’s health after she announced that she would need to postpone upcoming shows in Las Vegas, which she later canceled, because of “some health challenges” that she was dealing with. Parton said that her doctors told her she needed to have “a few procedures,” which she didn’t elaborate on, but she sought to allay any concerns.
“Don’t worry about me quittin’ the business because God hasn’t said anything about stopping yet,” Parton said in a post in September. “But, I believe He is telling me to slow down right now so I can be ready for more big adventures with all of you.”
Amid growing online speculation over her health, Parton posted a video in October, captioned “I ain’t dead yet!” in which she said, “I know lately, everybody thinks that I am sicker than I am. Do I look sick to you? I’m working hard here! Anyway, I wanted to put everybody’s mind at ease.”
She said in the video that when her husband was sick, and after he died, “I didn't take care of myself, so I let a lot of things go that I should’ve been taking care of. So anyway when I got around to it, the doctors said, ‘We need to take care of this, we need to take care of that.’ Nothing major.” She added that she had to cancel some appearances so that she could be near her home and Vanderbilt University Medical Center, which was where she was having “a few treatments here and there.”
In May, Parton shared another video update on her health, in which she said that it would take her more time to be ready to perform on stage again “because some of the meds and treatments make me a little bit swimmy-headed.”
“The good news,” she said at the time, “I’m responding really well to meds and treatments, and I’m improving every day.” She went on to say that she has “always had problems” with kidney stones but that, in recent years, her immune and digestive systems “got all out of whack” and her doctors were “working real hard on rebuilding and strengthening those.” She added that her doctors assured her that her health issues were treatable.
Just four days before her death, Parton told PEOPLE in a statement: “As I’ve shared in video messages throughout the past year, I am dealing with some health issues that I just didn’t pay attention to when I was watching over Carl.”
She reiterated that she hates to cancel things, such as her Las Vegas residency, but admitted, “I just couldn’t do the shows at the level I would want them to be, and in the way that I know my fans would expect them to be. I definitely plan to do special performances in the future, but I won’t tour anymore like I used to.” Parton added that she was in the early stages of developing “avatar performances” that would allow her to put on a show without having to “show up in person.”
“Seriously, though,” Parton told PEOPLE, “even though I’m still healin’, I’m still workin’! You know me — as I’ve often said — I’ve dreamed myself into a corner and I still have so many things I want to achieve, so I’m gonna keep on working as long as I can to see everything come to life.”
Tributes for the country music icon began pouring in on Tuesday afternoon, including from U.S. President Donald Trump, who called Parton “one of the greatest Country singers.” The President said that, in Parton’s honor, he was ordering American flags across the country to be lowered for a week, starting at 6 p.m.
“This is a true loss for millions of people,” Trump said on Truth Social. “There has never been anyone like her, and never will.”
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee announced on Tuesday that flags would be lowered to half-staff that day across the state in honor of Parton, whom he called “Tennessee’s favorite daughter.”
“Rare is the one who climbs to the pinnacle of fame, then scoffs at its allure, only to retain the genuine humility that defines them,” Lee said in a post on X. “Dolly Parton was one of a kind, who loved people, her work, her family, and her Lord. Tennessee has forever been changed - enhanced - by her, and will never be quite the same without Dolly.”
Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee said in a social media post that she and her husband were “absolutely heartbroken and saddened to hear of the passing of our friend.”
“Dolly’s life and career are forever woven into Tennessee’s music, culture, and history,” Blackburn said. “Her extraordinary talent, generosity, and love for the Volunteer State touched hearts around the world and will continue to inspire generations to come. Tennessee will forever be grateful for Dolly.”
Other politicians mourned the loss of Parton as well, remembering not only her contribution to the music industry but also her philanthropic legacy and advocacy.
Former President Bill Clinton said in a post on X that he and his wife, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, “were big fans” of Parton and “will always be grateful for the music and the memories,” including seeing her perform in 1974. “Dolly Parton was one of a kind—a great songwriter and performer who told the stories of everyday Americans with honesty, humility, and heart,” Clinton said. “She rose high from her East Tennessee roots and never forgot where she came from. And she always believed in giving back, especially in her efforts to promote literacy.”
Former President Joe Biden called Parton “an American original” and “an inspiration to millions.”
“She was a relentless advocate for women and for equality. Through her Imagination Library, she placed the gift of reading into the hands of millions of children because she understood literacy is the foundation of opportunity,” Biden said in a post on X. “But perhaps most importantly, Dolly treated everyone with kindness and respect. She lived her values with a flair and vitality for life that was uniquely her own. She was a trailblazer in every sense of the word, and she will be missed by millions around the world.”
Former Vice President Kamala Harris called Parton “a true American icon” and listed her many accolades in a social media post. “All at once she was kind, modest, and funny,” Harris said. “With her music, her philanthropy, and her style, Dolly was one of one.”
“Dolly Parton was one of the great entertainers of our era,” Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont said on X. “She was not only a talented musician & songwriter, but a lifelong philanthropist and advocate for literacy, education, LGBTQ+ rights, healthcare and disaster relief. Her music and humanity touched millions. She will be sorely missed.”
Education Secretary Linda McMahon said, “America lost an icon today. Dolly Parton embodied so much of what is possible in America - a remarkable singer, songwriter, entertainer, businesswoman, and philanthropist.” McMahon added that Parton’s “greatest legacy extends far beyond her music,” praising and linking to Parton’s Imagination Library.
Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling called Parton’s Imagination Library “the best contribution to child literacy ever made by a celebrity.” Rowling added in a post on X, “Our paths crossed once, in the 90s, backstage at a talk show, and I was completely tongue-tied and starstruck. RIP Dolly. You were a complete, irreplaceable one-off.”
Conservative media personality Megyn Kelly was among many who remarked on Parton’s broad appeal. “Dolly Parton seemed as close to total goodness as any mere mortal could come,” Kelly said in a post on X. “She united us all in our love and admiration for her and, now, in mourning her.”
CNN anchor Kaitlan Collins also remembered Parton on air Tuesday night, reporting on how people across the country were mourning the icon—including Collins.
“As a young girl growing up in the Deep South, Dolly was right up there with every other music legend that made up the soundtrack to our childhood. I can still remember my family driving from our home in Alabama up to Pigeon Forge, often blaring songs like ‘Hard Candy Christmas’ as the leaves were turning in the fall,” Collins recalled. “We loved our trips to the Great Smoky Mountains, the same mountains that gave all of us Dolly Parton.”
Many musicians also shared tributes for Parton.
Billy Ray Cyrus reflected on his years-long friendship with Parton.
“I have so many moments and memories with Dolly, it’s hard to know where to start,” he said in an Instagram post. “Like every little boy, I grew up loving Dolly Parton. She was a part of our lives, on our TV’s, right in our living rooms.”
“Dolly recently sent me a beautiful message, telling me she loved me with her whole heart,” he continued. “I will always love her in the same way ….. with my whole heart … and I always will.”
Fellow octogenarian entertainer and friend Dionne Warwick posted on X a photo with Parton and said, “I will certainly miss her laugher, jokes and her being. Rest well and in total peace my friend. My heart is heavy.”
Country singer and actress Reba McEntire honored her friend in a statement, thanking her “for all the wonderful things [she] did for us here on earth.”
“We will remember and cherish every memory and every note you ever played and sang,” McEntire said. “Thank you, Lord, for Dolly. She’s gonna have a blast in heaven singing all her favorite songs with all her family and friends who have gone on before her.”
“Dolly Parton had a way of making everyone feel special, and seen, and welcomed, and as if you were old friends,” Kelly Clarkson said in a social media post. “I will miss her heart and her voice as I am sure millions will. What an incredible gift and talent she was and still is with an amazing catalogue of art she has left behind for all of us.”
Beyoncé shared a touching tribute addressed to Parton on her website, saying, “You were the barometer. The North Star. Bold and brilliant. Talented and tenacious. You taught so many lessons on how to be uniquely oneself.” Beyoncé went on to say that she was “honored” that she had the opportunity to work with Parton: “I will treasure that forever. Thank you for your profound impact on the world. You are an angel who has made this world a happier place because of your joyful art. You are truly one of one.”
“Dolly Parton taught us that a woman can be powerful, beautiful and talented, and still be kind,” Jennifer Hudson said in a post on X. “And that success never has to come at the expense of grace, generosity, or heart !! What a wonderful example she set for us all. Rest well, Ms. Parton! We will always love you!! May your light shine on…”
Kacey Musgraves shared multiple posts on X about the news, saying in one that she was glad Parton was reunited with her late husband and summing up her sadness in another: “The world feels a lot less sparkly all of a sudden.”
Parton’s co-stars from her first feature film, 9 to 5 (1980), for which she also provided the Academy Award-nominated and chart-topping theme song, also paid their respects to Parton after her death.
Lily Tomlin called Parton “The Great Harmonizer of Humanity” in a post on X, while Jane Fonda shared a lengthy tribute on Instagram.
“I know that millions are mourning and I want to say this – more than anyone I have ever known, Dolly will always be with us because she was so present, so powerful, so generous and playful that she is woven into all our lives and hearts forever,” Fonda said.
“I never knew anyone like her,” Fonda added. “She was simultaneously a naughty, playful southern gal from the hollows of Tennessee and a deep, soulful thinker who could see through people right down to their true selves. She was many things…lyricist, songstress, player of many instruments, writer, prankster, visionary, loyal friend […] She was the voluptuous embodiment of empathy. That’s something of hers she’d want us all to take with us.”
“To her gay and trans fans,” Fonda continued, “I want you to know that she loved you. You know that without me telling you. She loved all her fans and they are legion. And you know she doesn’t want y’all to mourn now. Dress up and celebrate her spirit. But first, watch the final episode of Grace and Frankie,” Fonda said, referring to her Netflix show with Tomlin that concluded in 2022 with a guest appearance by Parton, “where she’s an Angel, the head honcho working class angel in Heaven.”
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