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Department of Defense or War? US official's X poll throws up unexpected frontrunner
Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who also heads the US government's Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, also expressed his views.
US defense secretary Pete Hegseth has initiated a public discussion on social media platform X about renaming the Department of Defense to its historical name ‘Department of War’.
“Better name? Have my thoughts…welcome yours.” Hegseth wrote while sharing a public poll regarding the new name of the Department of Defense.
As of 9 pm IST, about 53.6% of X users voted for changing the name to 'Department of War', while 46.4% of users voted in favour of retaining the Department of Defense.
The poll led to a debate among users about the implications of such a name change on public perception of military activities. While some advocated for the original name, others preferred the term 'Defense' to emphasise a less aggressive posture.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who also heads the US government's Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, also expressed his views.
“War is more accurate,” Musk wrote.
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Another X user, Sarah Adams, wrote that using the word “defence” makes the United States look weaker.
“Do the simple ‘War Department’—Defense makes us look weak—we must stay on Offense,” Adams wrote on X.
Another user who favoured the name Department of Defense wrote that the idea is to defend America rather than go to war.
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“Department of war — please no. The idea is to defend America, not go to war,” the user wrote.
The Department of Defense is America's largest government agency. Notably, it was established in 1789 as the Department of War. It was created to oversee the operation and maintenance of the Army, Navy and Marine Corps.
In 1947, US President Harry Truman signed the National Security Act. The legislation merged the Navy and War Departments and the newly independent Air Force into a single organization called the National Military Establishment led by a civilian secretary of defense.
In 1948, the US government amended the country's National Security Act, renaming the National Military Establishment to the Department of Defense.
