Yes, Please Call It the War Department
Donald Trump has made one of the most remarkable blunders of his political career, beginning the process of changing the name of the “Department of Defense” to the “Department of War.” In doing so, Trump is eliminating an Orwellian propaganda term that was meant to disguise aggression as defense. Trump and “Secretary of War” Pete Hegseth believe that this new name will emphasize the “lethality” of the department. But what it will actually do—assuming it is followed through on, which is doubtful—is make it more obvious that the U.S. state is a warmongering aggressor, and galvanize opposition to U.S. military spending. It was difficult to convince Congress to cut “defense spending,” since, after all, who can oppose defense? On the other hand, “war spending” is easy to make a case against. The American people support defense, but they are sick of war.