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President Donald Trump has signed an executive order officially changing the name of the Department of Defense to the Department of War.

Often referred to as the Pentagon after its distinct headquarters in Virginia, the Department of Defense was named so following the end of the Second World War. Trump called the move, during the presidency of Harry Truman, “woke.”

Both the president and newly retitled Secretary of War Pete Hegseth have advocated for the name change. The rebranding is part of the Trump administration’s “warrior ethos” campaign, which has included renaming bases and ships and banning books.

Speaking in the Oval Office, Hegseth promised “maximum lethality — not tepid legality. Violent effect, not politically correct. We’re gonna raise up warriors. Not just defenders.”

In other news, the latest jobs numbers show employment growth is worse than expected. New data is the latest since Trump dramatically fired the Bureau of Labor Statistics commissioner, Erika McEntarfer, last month.

The U.S added just 22,000 jobs in August, worse than economists predicted, as the job market continues to cool amid the knock-on effects from Trump’s trade war with tariffs. Unemployment increased to 4.3 percent, the highest since 2021

Watch LIVE: Trump signs executive order changing Pentagon’s name to ‘Department of War’

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Oliver O’Connell5 September 2025 21:02

Trump has signed more than 200 executive orders since taking office

President Donald Trump’s staff secretary Will Scharf tells him that his Department of War EO was his 200th executive order since taking office on January 20.

He notes that it is more than Joe Biden’s four years in office, or Barack Obama’s two terms.

Scharf calls it a “momentous accomplishment.”

During the Biden and Obama administrations, conservatives fervently criticized the president for acting by EO and not through Congress.

Oliver O’Connell5 September 2025 22:00

McConnell demands more military funding as Trump rebrands Pentagon

Donald Trump’s proposal to rename the Pentagon the ‘Department of War’ has led former Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to demand more military spending.

On X, McConnell wrote: “If we call it the Dept. of War, we’d better equip the military to actually prevent and win wars. Can’t preserve American primacy if we’re unwilling to spend substantially more on our military than Carter or Biden.” McConnell, whose later Senate career focuses on hawkish defence policies, added: “‘Peace through strength’ requires investment, not just rebranding.”

Oliver O’Connell5 September 2025 21:52

Trump insists rebranding Pentagon won’t be costly

President Donald Trump insisted that the cost of the Department of Defense name change will be “not a lot,” answering a question from a reporter in the Oval Office.

He noted that things like official stationery would have to be changed, but without spending too much in federal funds.

“We know how to rebrand without having to go crazy,” Trump said.

Oliver O’Connell5 September 2025 21:46

Trump says Department of War sends message to world

President Donald Trump said rebranding the Pentagon as the “Department of War” sends a key signal to the world.

“I think it sends a message of victory, really a message of strength,” Trump said as he signed the order establishing the “Department of War” as a secondary name for the Pentagon.

Oliver O’Connell5 September 2025 21:45

Hegseth promises ‘maximum lethality, not tepid legality’ in newly named Department of War

Newly retitled Secretary of War Pete Hegseth says during the signing of the rebranding of the Pentagon: “After winning a war for Independence in 1789, George Washington established the war department. This country won every major war after that. To include World War I and World War II. Total victory! 50 years after that, we changed the name. We haven’t won a major war since.”

He adds: “Maximum lethality, not tepid legality. Violent effect, not politically correct. We’re gonna raise up warriors. Not just defenders.”

Oliver O’Connell5 September 2025 21:26

We won the First World War. We won the Second World War. We won everything before that and in between. And then we decided to go woke, and we changed the name to the Department of Defense. So, we’re going Department of War.

President Donald Trump on bringing back the Department of War name at the Pentagon

Oliver O’Connell5 September 2025 21:23

ANALYSIS: There’s no more denying it – Trump risks a recession on his watch

If Trump thought he could neuter the Jeffrey Epstein scandal this week, he received an even worse present on the doorstep of the White House on Friday: a weak jobs report.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported a triple barrel of bad news in its jobs report: First, it showed that the unemployment rate ticked up to 4.3 percent. Second, the number showed that the U.S. economy added only 22,000 jobs, far below market expectations. Third, downward revisions from the June jobs report showed that for the first time since 2020, the U.S. economy had lost jobs, in this case losing 13,000 jobs.

But nothing can stave off the havoc that Trump’s tariffs will wreak on the economy. A look under the hood of the numbers today shows the economy is headed to a full-fledged heart attack.

Oliver O’Connell5 September 2025 20:50

Trump to personally direct $550B of Japan’s investment in US as part of trade deal, report says

Japan has reportedly agreed to an extraordinary deal with the U.S., allowing President Donald Trump to dictate the investment of $550 billion of its capital within American borders, according to an unpublished memorandum.

The agreement, detailed by The Financial Times, stipulates that Japan must fund projects designated by the president within a mere 45 days, or face the reintroduction of steep tariffs.

This unusual arrangement, signed on Thursday when the trade deal was officially enacted, underscores the significant pressure Washington’s trading partners are under to secure tariff concessions.

Japan, a key U.S. ally and the world’s fourth-largest economy, had previously faced a 25 percent tariff on its exports to the U.S. The new accord reportedly reduces this to 15 percent, with the investment clause acting as a critical condition.

South Korea and the European Union have also pledged huge investments in the U.S. as part of their tariff deals.

Oliver O’Connell5 September 2025 20:30

Trump threatens trade probe over EU antitrust fine against Google

President Donald Trump on Friday criticized the European Union’s decision to fine Google $3.46 billion over antitrust concerns and threatened a broader trade investigation against the EU in response to the move.

“We cannot let this happen to brilliant and unprecedented American Ingenuity and, if it does, I will be forced to start a Section 301 proceeding to nullify the unfair penalties being charged to these Taxpaying American Companies,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

Europe today “hit” another great American company, Google, with a $3.5 Billion Dollar fine, effectively taking money that would otherwise go to American Investments and Jobs. This is on top of the many other Fines and Taxes that have been issued against Google and other American Tech Companies, in particular. Very unfair, and the American Taxpayer will not stand for it! As I have said before, my Administration will NOT allow these discriminatory actions to stand. Apple, as an example, was forced to pay $17 Billion Dollars in a Fine that, in my opinion, should not have been charged — They should get their money back! We cannot let this happen to brilliant and unprecedented American Ingenuity and, if it does, I will be forced to start a Section 301 proceeding to nullify the unfair penalties being charged to these Taxpaying American Companies. Thank you for your attention to this matter!

Oliver O’Connell5 September 2025 20:16