In comments made at President Donald Trump’s press conference earlier this week, Trump said he, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and other top U.S. officials felt like their work during the conflict in Iran made them warriors.
Referring to Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Trump said, “Should we say secretary of war?”
The president noted that the Cabinet position was originally known as the Secretary of War. “Maybe, for a few weeks, we’ll call it that because we feel like warriors,” he said, while acknowledging that the original name might not be politically correct.
The position of Secretary of War existed from 1789 until 1947, when the National Security Act reorganized the military departments and established the Department of Defense. The Secretary of War previously oversaw the United States Army, while naval forces were managed separately under the Secretary of the Navy.