Trump Says U.S. Military Has ‘Never Fought to Win’ Since World War II

The New York Times ^ | Sept. 5, 2025, 8:36 p.m. ET | Erica L. Green

[E. Pluribus Unum]

As he signed an order recognizing the Defense Department as the “Department of War,” President Trump said that the country “could have won every war, but we really chose to be very politically correct.”

President Trump signed an executive order on Friday that ceremonially recognized the Defense Department as the “Department of War,” a name that was dropped after World War II and that the president claimed had caused the country to enter wars it “never fought to win.”

“We won World War II. We won everything before, and as I said, we won everything in between,” Mr. Trump said at an event in the Oval Office, where he signed the order. “And we were very strong, but we never fought to win. We just didn’t fight to win.”

Mr. Trump argued that the name, which was changed by President Harry S. Truman to combine all of branches of the military, had been changed because the country “decided to go woke.”

“I think the Department of War sends a signal,” Mr. Trump said. The change, he argued, was a “much more appropriate name, especially in light of where the world is right now.”

He added: “We could have won every war, but we really chose to be very politically correct, or wokey, and we just fight forever.”

The Department of War was established by Congress under President George Washington in 1789, just months after the Constitution was ratified. Mr. Truman changed the agency’s name as part of the National Security Act he signed into law in 1947, which merged the Navy and War departments and a newly independent Air Force into a single organization. Congress established the Department of Defense name in 1949.

Mr. Trump said that he anticipated pushing to codify the name change into law...

[Owen]

A lot is propaganda.

Just like the US aggressively covering up all the rapes our troops did in Germany. And still do on Okinawa.

Those German troops were starving. Starvation pretty much never kills in the context of running out of calories to make your heart beat. The immune system fails first and then illness kills — but it is actually starvation.

When the German officers faced their Soviet counterparts during the surrender at Stalingrad, the Soviets were amazed . . . why do you look like this? You are officers. You had some airports. Why didn’t they fly you out? Answer: German High Command would not allow it.

And as I noted, malaria was the killer at Bataan. The Japanese were infected too. But they had the advantage of bringing in fresh troops not yet infected. They just walked in. There was no battle. The Americans and Filipinos were on their backs suffering. They were marched out of there mostly to get away from the swamp and mosquitos. It was the only way for them to live.

[Vaduz]

Agree the politicians make it an investment return in arms and other items needed.

Vietnam was a huge cash maker along with a few others.

[MosesKnows]

The lesson learned from Vietnam is clear: a war worth dying for is worth winning.

[1Old Pro]

The lesson learned from Vietnam is clear: a war worth dying for is worth winning.

And we need to define "winning" early on in any battle/war.

[Teacher317]

The military fights how the CIC tells them to fight. Sadly, most politicians have been slaves to the media since WWII, and afraid to do anything that will get negative press coverage. THAT has been the difference since WWII, not the soldiers.

I would be 1000% for a federal law that ALL news and information about military actions have AT LEAST a one-month hold put on them, with reporters and editors and executives put in jail for one month for any such violations.

The public has a "right to know", but it does NOT have the "right to know" in real time, when lives are on the line.

[x]

Saddam’s gone. Noriega. Maurice Bishop (look him up, he may have been dead when we went in, I don’t know).

The thing is, you can’t conquer another civilization unless you’re willing to be far more brutal than we have been. Maybe you can’t do it at all. Not permanently anyway. People don’t like being conquered. They don’t just accept it.

I’m getting a little worried that Trump has been listening to Netanyahu too much.

[Zionist Conspirator]

Hooray! We got our War Department back!

Will the Navy get its department back as well?

[Taxman]

I would state it somewhat differently: “The U.S. Military has NEVER BEEN ALLOWED to win a war since WW II!”

For whatever dubious reasons, ant-American politicians have prevailed.

The end is near for them, thanks to POTUS 45/47!