White House accelerates ‘Department of War’ efforts
The Trump administration is moving forward with plans to rename the Department of Defense to the Department of War, according to a report on Saturday, referencing a White House official, after US President Donald Trump suggested the idea on Monday. The report indicated that restoring the Department of War name for the government’s largest department would likely necessitate congressional action, yet the White House is considering alternative methods to effectuate the change.
Republican Representative Greg Steube of Florida has introduced an amendment to the annual defense policy bill aimed at renaming the department, reflecting some Republican backing in Congress for this change. The White House provided no specifics but highlighted Trump’s remarks this week regarding the US military’s offensive capabilities.
President Trump emphasized that our military should prioritize offense over defense, which is why he has focused on warfighters at the Pentagon rather than DEI and woke ideology. “Stay tuned,” said White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly, using the initials DEI to refer to programs aimed at increasing diversity, equity, and inclusion. Trump proposed renaming the Defense Department to the “Department of War” during a conversation with reporters in the Oval Office on Monday, stating it “just sounded to me better.”
“It used to be called the Department of War and it had a stronger sound,” Trump stated. “We want defense, but we want offense too … “As Department of War we won everything, we won everything and I think we’re going to have to go back to that.” The War Department transformed into the Department of Defense through a gradual process initiated by the National Security Act of 1947, which unified the Army, Navy, and Air Force under a single entity known as the National Military Establishment. An amendment to the law passed in 1949 officially introduced the name “Department of Defense,” establishing the current structure.
Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth are promoting a more aggressive military image while implementing various changes, including the removal of top military leaders whose views conflict with Trump. The Trump administration has sought to bar transgender individuals from joining the US military and to remove all currently serving members. The Pentagon claims that transgender individuals are medically unfit, a statement that civil rights activists argue is false and amounts to illegal discrimination.
