The Senate Armed Services Committee voted in June to advance legislation that would permanently rename the Department of Defense as the Department of War, moving President Trump's September 2025 executive order one step closer to becoming law and reversing a 77-year-old Congressional rebrand that critics say obscured the military's core mission.

The committee approved the name change as part of its markup of the fiscal 2027 National Defense Authorization Act, according to RealClearDefense. The NDAA must still pass the full Senate and be reconciled with the House version before reaching the president's desk.

Trump's original executive order authorized Pentagon officials to use "Department of War" and "secretary of war" as secondary titles in public communications, official correspondence, and ceremonial contexts. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has since adopted the title in public appearances and official documents, though the legal name remains Department of Defense absent Congressional action.

Returning to Pre-1949 Nomenclature

The United States maintained a Department of War from its founding until 1947, when the National Security Act created the National Military Establishment to unify the Army, Navy, and newly independent Air Force under a single organization. Congress renamed the NME to Department of Defense in 1949, allegedly because the acronym sounded too much like "enemy," according to historical accounts.

"This commission will clarify our mission," Hegseth said when Trump signed the executive order in September 2025, arguing the "Defense" label had contributed to mission creep and distracted from the military's fundamental purpose of fighting and winning wars.

The name change requires Congressional approval because the 1949 amendment to the National Security Act codified "Department of Defense" in statute. Trump's executive order instructed Hegseth to recommend legislative and executive actions required to permanently enact the rebrand.

NDAA 2027 Faces Uncertain Timeline

The fiscal 2027 NDAA has stalled in negotiations over spending levels, U.S.-Israel defense technology cooperation provisions, and policy riders related to the ongoing Iran conflict. Fiscal 2027 began October 1, leaving defense planning in limbo without an enacted authorization bill.

The House passed its version of the NDAA 216-212 in a tight vote, with just six Democrats supporting the $1.15 trillion defense package. Senate negotiators typically reconcile differences between House and Senate versions before sending a final bill to the president.

The absence of an enacted NDAA creates uncertainty for defense policy as lawmakers work to reconcile competing approaches amid an active conflict and election-year pressures.

If the name change survives final negotiations and becomes law, it would mark the first time Congress formally renamed a Cabinet-level department to reverse a previous rebrand. The War Department operated for over 150 years before the 1947 reorganization that created the modern defense establishment.