Renaming US defense department the Department of War could cost $125m

Congressional Budget Office analysis says renaming – which Congress must approve – would cost US taxpayers millions

Renaming the Department of Defense the Department of War could cost US taxpayers as much as $125m depending on how broadly and quickly the change is made, according to an analysis released Wednesday from the Congressional Budget Office.

Donald Trump signed an executive order in September that authorized the Department of War as a secondary title for the Pentagon. At the time, Trump said the switch was intended to signal to the world that the US was a force to be reckoned with, and he complained that the Department of Defense’s name was “woke”.