President Trump on Friday signed an order to formally change the Department of Defense to the Department of War, framing the rebrand as a signal of American strength and suggesting previous drawn out wars under the old moniker were the result of political correctness.
Trump signed an executive order that authorizes the name change for the agency, and for Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s title to shift to secretary of War. A permanent name change will require an act of Congress.
In explaining the change, Trump cited America’s track record of military success under the Department of War moniker through World War II and suggesting that the U.S. military underwent a change in attitude under the Department of Defense name.
“Really it has to do with winning. We should have won every war. We could have won every war, but we really chose to be very politically correct or wokey and we just fight forever,” Trump said, flanked by Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine.
“We had it, and we won World War I, we won World War II, we won everything before, and as I said, we won everything in between,” Trump added. “And we were very strong. But we never fought to win. We just didn’t fight to win. We would have won every one of those wars quickly, but they went a route that I think was probably politically correct, but not correct for our nation. So I think the Department of War sends a signal.”
Asked how the name change squared with his pursuit of peace and efforts to end conflicts around the world, Trump argued U.S. military strength helps ensure there are no additional conflicts.
Hegseth said the name change was “not just about renaming, it’s about restoring. Words matter. Restoring…the warrior ethos. Restoring victory and clarity as an instinct.”
The Department of War was established by George Washington in 1789. It existed until 1947, when it was reorganized by then-President Harry Truman. It was renamed the Department of Defense in 1949.
Since Trump took office, the Pentagon has taken a series of steps to root out what the president and his allies have decried as examples of political correctness or “woke” policies. The department has rolled back diversity initiatives and it has reversed name changes to military bases that had been switched because they were named after Confederate soldiers.
