by Kyle Anzalone
Aug 25, 2025
In a meeting with the South Korean President, President Donald Trump suggested renaming the Department of Defense to the Department of War.
“Pete Hegseth has been incredible with the, as I call it, the Department of War. You know, we call it the Department of Defense, but between us, I think we’re going to change the name,” Trump said. “I have a feeling we’re going to be changing. Everybody likes that. We had an unbelievable history of victory when it was Department of War.”
Trump has referred to Hegseth as the “Secretary of War.”
The remarks highlight a fundamental contradiction in Trump’s foreign policy. At times, Trump says his goal is to be a peacemaker, and his presidential campaigns were defined by his opposition to Joe Biden and Hillary Clinton’s hawkish foreign policy.
However, as president, Trump has often started and expanded wars. He has continued to support Israel and Ukraine. Trump ramped up the war in Somalia. Additionally, he ordered the bombing of Yemen and Iran.
The Pentagon is now preparing for war in Mexico and potentially Venezuela. To fund Trump’s ambitious global goals, Congress approved a military budget exceeding $1 trillion.
The Department of Defense was renamed from the Department of War after World War II.
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