Trump recovers “War Bureau” as defense team
President Donald Trump has signed an executive order allowing him to defend. Pete Hegses uses “War Division” as the secondary name of the pentagon.
WASHINGTON – On September 5, President Donald Trump ordered the administration to change the name of the Department of Defense’s “warfare department,” reclaiming the cabinet name that was abandoned in 1947, matching it with what White House officials call the new “warrior spirit” that is permeating the military.
Trump has signed an executive order that will become the new “secondary name” of the Department of Defense.
The move will allow Defense Secretary Pete Hegses to use titles such as “The Ministry of War,” “The Secretary of War,” and “Deputy Secretary of War” in official government communications and communications without formalizing the name of departments that require action from Congress.
“We won World War I. We won World War II. We won it before and in the meantime,” Trump said before signing the order in an oval office. “And we decided to wake up and changed our name to the Department of Defense. So we’re going to the War Bureau.”
Ironically, Trump’s return to the War Bureau occurs when he tried to cast himself as a peace manager in several international conflicts, but tried to flex the strength of the US military.
“I think it’s a much more appropriate name, especially considering where the world is now. We have the most powerful military in the world,” Trump said. “I think we’ve gained peace because of the fact that we’re strong.”
Shortly after Trump signed the order, the official Pentagon website redirected the visitors to war.gov. Hegseth updated his profile with X to reflect the change. The secretary then posted a video in which the “Secretary of Defense” placard was defeated on the door of his office and replaced by the “Chief of War.”
Under the order, all enforcement departments and agencies must recognize and respond to changes to the “war department” of internal and external communications. The order further directs Hegseth to encourage legislative and enforcement measures to permanently rename the US Department of Defense to the US War Bureau.
“It’s not just about changing the name, it’s about recovering,” Hegses said. “The words are important. Just as you have led to the President, it restores the spirit of the warrior, restores victory and clarity as the final state, and restores the intention of using force.”
Hegseth added:
The Trump administration has not provided a cost estimate for changing the government-wide Pentagon’s reference to the War Bureau.
“We know how to rebrand without getting mad,” Trump said. The change will be “not the most expensive method.”
The Ministry of War was established in 1789 as the original Cabinet Office overseeing the US Army. Another division of the Navy was created in the same year.
The War Department was dissolved after World War II under the National Security Act of 1947, consolidating the Army and Navy divisions and creating a new air force, jointly known as the National Military Facilities (NME) between President Harry Truman.
The NME was renamed the Department of Defense in 1949. Historians say that in the reason for the name was chosen, it was to show that the United States prioritized preventing war in the post-World War II nuclear age.
Hegus agreed with Trump that since abandoning the war sector in 1947, “we have not won a massive war,” adding that he “is not to disgrace the fighters” in the Korean war and Vietnam war and conflict in Iraq and Afghanistan.
“We’re going to raise warriors,” Hegses said, “Not only about defenders, but also about the name change.
Reach Joey Garrison with X @joeygarrison.
