From the New York Post: President Trump suggested Monday that he could change the name of the Department of Defense back to the Department of War — the moniker by which it was known for more than 150 years.
The president said he’s pursuing the reversal because the old name for the Cabinet-level agency has a “stronger sound” and is “much more appropriate.”
“We’re just going to do it. I’m sure Congress will go along if we need that,” Trump said in the Oval Office. “‘Defense’ is too defensive. We want to be defensive, but we want to be offensive, too if we have to be.”
The report explains that it was called the War Department from 1789 until 1947. In that year, Congress passed a law to split the Army and Air Force and formed the National Military Executive with the already-existing Navy Department.
In 1949 the National Military Executive was then renamed as the Department of Defense.
While signing executive orders in the Oval Office on Monday, Trump turned to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and said, “Pete, you started off by saying ’the Department of Defense.’ And somehow it didn’t sound good to me.”
“Defense. What are we, defense? Why are we defense? It used to be called the Department of War, and it had a stronger sound. And, as you know, we won World War I, we won World War II, we won everything. Now we have a Department of Defense. We’re defenders. I don’t know,” Trump added, warming up to the idea of a name change even more.
“Defense? I don’t want to be Defense only. We want defense, but we want offense too, if that’s OK,” Trump continued, adding, “as Department of War, we won everything, we won everything. And I think we’re going to have to go back to that.”
BREAKING: President Trump says the Department of Defense should be called the Department of War pic.twitter.com/ivjbkPEwgW
— Fox News (@FoxNews) August 25, 2025
Q: “On the Department of War, how do you plan to do that? It requires an act of Congress to rename the Defense Department…”
President Trump: “We’re just going to do it. I’m sure Congress will go along if we need that…Defense is too defensive. We want to be defensive, but we… pic.twitter.com/tfj3jhGVhY
— CSPAN (@cspan) August 25, 2025
Secretary Hegseth doubled down on the proposal during Trump’s Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, and explained why it is important.
Trump agreed that he liked the sound of “Department of War” better but indicated the final decision has not yet been made.
Defense Sec. Pete Hegseth doubles down on Pres. Trump’s call to revert agency’s name to Department of War: “It’s not just about words — it’s about the warrior ethos … George Washington started the Department of War because he wanted us to win our wars.” https://t.co/1QYFBbAXlg pic.twitter.com/CM0PIUvczE
— ABC News (@ABC) August 26, 2025
READ MORE from the New York Post.
Follow us on X (Formerly Twitter.)
The DML News App: www.X.com/DMLNewsApp
