President Donald Trump signed an executive order aimed at rebranding the Department of Defense as the Department of War. Some of Trump's Republican supporters in Congress have proposed legislation to make the name change official. Without a change in law, Trump plans to authorize the Pentagon to use secondary titles. The Department of War was the original name from 1789 until it was changed in 1947, two years after World War II ended. Trump has expressed a preference for the original name, saying it “just sounded better.”
President Donald Trump plans to sign an executive order to rebrand the Department of Defense as the Department of War. This move is part of his effort to project a tougher image for America's military. Trump cannot formally change the name without legislation, which his administration will request from Congress. In the meantime, the Pentagon will use “secondary titles” to go by its original name. The Department of War was created in 1789 and renamed in 1947. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has hinted at the change, and Trump believes Congress will support the move if needed.
U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. made several false and misleading claims in a three-hour Senate Committee hearing while discussing his seven-month tenure leading federal health agencies. Kennedy on Thursday ignored federal data, twisted legislation and pointed to unsubstantiated treatments whole addressing topics such as COVID-19 vaccines, rural hospitals and school shootings.
The House Oversight Committee has publicly posted the files it has received from the Justice Department on the sex trafficking investigations into Jeffrey Epstein and his former girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell. The folders contain hundreds of image files of years-old court filings related to Epstein and Maxwell. They also contain video files appearing to be body cam footage from police searches as well as recordings and summaries of law enforcement interviews with victims detailing the abuse they said they suffered. Pressure is mounting on Congress to force more disclosure in the case, but the files released Tuesday they mostly contain information that was already publicly known.
President Donald Trump’s recent actions have sparked debate over the Posse Comitatus Act, a law from 1878 that limits military involvement in domestic affairs. A judge on Tuesday ruled Trump’s administration violated federal law by sending troops to accompany federal agents on immigration raids this summer in Los Angeles. The Posse Comitatus Act prevents the military from enforcing domestic laws unless bypassed by Congress or under the Insurrection Act. Experts say the law’s enforcement has clear limitations and remains largely untested. Trump administration attorneys have argued the law doesn’t apply because the troops were protecting federal officers not enforcing laws.
As Congress returns to Washington this fall after a monthlong August recess, it will have to find a way to work with Democrats or around them as a government shutdown looms. The annual spending battle will dominate the September agenda, along with conversations among Senate Republicans about changing the chamber’s rules to thwart Democratic stalling tactics on President Donald Trump’s nominations. The Senate is also debating whether to move forward on legislation that would slap steep tariffs on some of Russia’s trading partners as the U.S. presses Russian President Vladimir Putin on Ukraine.
Missouri’s Republican governor is calling a special legislative session to redraw the state’s U.S. House districts. The announcement Friday by Gov. Mike Kehoe comes as President Donald Trump has been urging Republican-led states to reshape district lines to give the party a better shot at retaining control of Congress in next year’s elections. It came hours after Texas Gov. Greg Abbott signed into law a new U.S. House map that gives the GOP a chance at winning five additional seats. Democratic lawmakers in California have countered with a redistricting plan giving Democrats a chance at winning five more seats there. The California plan still needs voter approval.
A redistricting battle for partisan advantage in Congress is spreading across states. Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Friday signed legislation creating a new U.S. House map that gives Republicans a chance to win as many as five more seats in next year's elections. Hours later, Republican Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe called a special session on redistricting in an attempt to gain another GOP seat. Meanwhile, California Democrats are asking voters to approve revised House districts that give Democrats there a chance at winning five more seats. Officials in other states also are considering redrawing congressional districts to try to gain a partisan advantage.
A shooting at a Catholic church in Minneapolis has sparked calls for action from Minnesota officials. Mayor Jacob Frey is urging a statewide and federal ban on certain semiautomatic weapons and high-capacity magazines following the shooting that left two children dead and 18 people injured. Police have said the shooter used a legally purchased rifle, shotgun and pistol. Minnesota already has some gun regulations. But the state faces challenges in passing more restrictions because neither the Democrats nor the Republicans dominate the state Legislature. Eleven states and Washington, D.C., have some form of semiautomatic weapon restrictions.
The director of the nation’s top public health agency has been fired after less than one month in the job. The White House says Susan Monarez isn’t “aligned with” President Donald Trump’s agenda and refused to resign, so she was fired. Her lawyers said she was targeted for standing up for science. Also on Wednesday, some other top agency leaders said they are resigning. Monarez was sworn in on July 31 — less than a month ago, making her the shortest-serving CDC director in the history of the 79-year-old agency.