Trump teases renaming the Defense Department back to the historic 'Department of War' next week

President Donald Trump on Monday signaled that he would attempt to revert the Defense Department back to the Department of War sometime next week.

The Department of Defense's name was changed in 1949 through an amendment to the 1947 National Security Act, which had combined the Army, Air Force and Navy under one department. The Army and Air Force were part of the Department of War before that.

Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth have both hinted at the name change in the past. Trump referred to Hegseth as his "Secretary of War" in June and Hegseth polled his base on what name they'd prefer for his department in March.

“[When] we won World War I, World War II, it was called the Department of War. And to me, that’s really what it is,” Trump said at a press event with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on Monday. “Everybody likes that we had an unbelievable history of victory when it was Department of War. Then we changed it to Department of Defense.”

The president said the change would likely take place in the "next week or so," but it would likely need congressional approval in order to be permanent and official, according to Politico.

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.