President Trump wanted a Department of War. Days later, he got what could be the start of World War III.
On Sept. 5, Trump signed an executive order to reinstate the name “Department of War,” which had been archived since the Department of Defense was created by the National Security Act of 1947.
At the name-change signing, “Secretary of War” Pete Hegseth acted with his usual “warrior ethos,” spouting aggressive, rehearsed phrases about how the revived name conveyed “maximum lethality, not tepid legality” and “violent effect, not politically correct,” to warn our enemies that “We’re gonna raise up warriors. Not just defenders.”
A White House fact sheet stated the name change will “signal to adversaries America’s readiness to wage war to secure its interests.”
Trump’s “readiness to wage war” is about to be tested. On Tuesday evening, NATO forces successfully scrambled jets to shoot down Russian drones that breached Polish airspace.
Since last Friday’s lethal name change, America’s most formidable adversaries, China and Russia, have been quiet about Trump’s new strategic message. That raises the question whether the Russian-launched drones over Poland were their “public statement.” Consider last week’s curious timeline.
On Sept. 2, Chinese President Xi Jinping delivered a powerful statement showcasing his own “maximum lethality” by hosting an impressive military parade in Beijing. The display featured an abundance of advanced weaponry and over 10,000 highly disciplined troops.
Watching alongside Xi were Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Although the parade ostensibly commemorated the end of World War II, it signaled how China is leading a new world order, fearlessly challenging eight decades of post-war military and economic dominance by the U.S.
Was Trump jealous and threatened by Xi’s spectacle of strength compared to his own much hyped but largely underwhelming military parade in Washington on July 14? Two actions could point to yes.
During Xi’s parade, Trump engaged in a bizarre act of presidential diplomacy. On Truth Social, he accused China, Russia and North Korea of conspiring against the U.S. Never has an American president publicly asked such a taunting question.
Three days later came the rebranded, more bellicose “Department of War,” which appears to be Trump’s way of countering Xi’s parade, portraying military strength through signage.
Together, the World War II retro name change and China’s 80th anniversary parade serve as reminders of America’s victorious advantage over the Axis powers: our rapid transition into the “arsenal of democracy.” That phrase, coined by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1940, refers to the lightning speed at which U.S. factories shifted from producing consumer goods to manufacturing an extraordinary amount of war material, maintaining that pace until the Allied victory in 1945.
Eight decades later, America appears to lack that decisive advantage for several reasons, which will be discussed shortly.
But first, a prescient interview with Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) was published on Sept. 3, one day after the Chinese military parade featured goose-stepping troops reminiscent of Nazi soldiers.
The former Senate majority leader voiced comparisons between then and now, warning, “Those who were totally anxious to stay out of all of what was going on in Europe were called ‘America First.’ Sound familiar? So, what do we have today? North Korea, China, Russia, Iran and Iran’s proxies. They’re very different kinds of countries, but they have one thing in common: They hate us.” McConnell cautioned, “So, when you talk about preparedness, we’re not prepared like we should be.”
Two days later, after Trump renamed the Defense Department, McConnell said on X, “If we call it the Department of War, we’d better equip the military to actually prevent and win wars.”
Five days after the renaming, Russian drones violated Polish and NATO airspace. The incursion prompted Poland’s prime minister to say, “This situation brings us the closest we have been to open conflict since World War II.”
So far, Trump’s response on Truth Social has been cryptic and underwhelming: “What’s with Russia violating Poland’s airspace with drones? Here we go!”
Now the world waits to see if the drone attack marks the start of NATO unleashing its firepower against Putin and if America fully engages.
That could mean even more War Department funding. But money is only one issue derailing a modern “arsenal of democracy,” directly linked to America’s shocking lack of preparedness.
Trump and Hegseth’s shiny new Department of War signs are proudly symbolic but disconnected from the untold amounts of war materials needed to sustain a long-term, multi-front global conflict. This is due to multiple chronic problems: a lack of domestically produced raw materials, reduced manufacturing capacity, disruptions to international supply chains, general workforce shortages and a dearth of critical skills. This list collectively makes it very difficult for the U.S. to quickly ramp up the massive production effort needed in a global security crisis.
The Trump administration has begun addressing that complex, intertwined list of issues, which is decades in the making. But for now, every War Department branch has internal or external reports repeating phrases like “falling behind,” “aging fleets,” “lags in production,” “delayed maintenance,” “spare part shortages,” “new weapon systems behind schedule,” “personnel shortages” and “yet to achieve dominance.” That also means only small percentages of fully combat-ready units, fleets or squadrons can be quickly deployed for extended international missions.
Reading these reports emboldens our enemies.
Specifically, drone production is a critical weak spot, detailed in a report by the Trump-friendly Heritage Foundation, which states, “Given its current capabilities, the United States in all probability would not be able to win a drone war with China.”
Or any prolonged war, according to another Heritage report.
With war clouds gathering, will Trump alter the Great Seal of the United States? The eagle faces the olive branch, signifying peace, deliberately turned away from the arrows of war. Is the president aware that the seal conflicts with his policy statements of “maximum lethality” and “America’s readiness to wage war”?
If Trump is bluffing, he will be tested, along with the nation at large.
Myra Adams is a political and religious opinion writer who served on the creative team of two Republican presidential campaigns, in 2004 and 2008.
