Sean Parnell is urging Congress to put the U.S. military’s “Department of War” title into law, giving it a statutory basis beyond its current executive order authorization.
The House passed H.R. 8800, its fiscal 2027 defense authorization bill, by a 216-212 vote on July 22. Section 1091 extends beyond statutes to regulations, maps, documents, records and other federal papers. Under the House text, references to the Department of Defense and Secretary of Defense would be treated as references to the Department of War and Secretary of War.
The Senate Armed Services Committee advanced S. 4784 by an 18-9 vote. Its Section 1078 would amend specified U.S. Code provisions and, like the House section, deem references in federal laws, regulations, maps, documents, records and other papers to use the new titles.
Executive Order 14347, signed by President Donald Trump on Sept. 5, 2025, permits “Department of War” and “Secretary of War” as secondary titles for specified executive-branch uses. The order says statutory references to the Department of Defense and Secretary of Defense remain in force until changed by law.
In a Fox News opinion piece published Oct. 26, Chief Pentagon Spokesman and Senior Advisor Sean Parnell urged lawmakers to keep the provisions in the final bill and send it to Trump. He argued that the title would communicate the military’s purpose more clearly to allies and adversaries. “Words define the mission, and the mission drives everything else,” Parnell wrote. The executive order and his argument describe the intended signal but do not measure whether either group has changed its behavior.
The Congressional Budget Office estimated that a limited rollout focused mainly on the Office of the Secretary of Defense would cost about $10 million. A minimal phased approach could cost a few million dollars, while a broad, rapid rollout could reach $125 million. A statutory renaming could cost hundreds of millions, depending on how it is carried out, the agency said. CBO also said modest implementation costs could mean forgoing other activities funded by existing budgets.
The War Department dates to 1789, according to the National Archives. The National Security Act of 1947 redesignated it as the Department of the Army, and the National Military Establishment took the Department of Defense name in 1949. Parnell is asking Congress to retain the language in the final fiscal 2027 bill and send it to Trump.
