Trump Action Archive

Supporting reports

• ICE agents arrest and injure military veterans at deportation protests — US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested or injured at least eight military veterans during protests against Trump's deportation campaign and National Guard deployment plans. Documented cases include 70-year-old Air Force veteran Dana Briggs charged with assault after being knocked over by ICE agents in Chicago; Afghanistan veteran John Cerrone tackled, detained nine hours in solitary confinement, and charged with disorderly conduct; and Afghanistan veteran Daryn Herzberg in Portland, grabbed by hair and face-slammed, hospitalized, seeking $150,000 damages. Democratic lawmakers condemned the incidents as excessive force and violations of constitutional protest rights.

Supporting reports

• Louisiana reopens Angola prison unit as ICE immigration detention facility — Governor Jeff Landry declared a state of emergency in late July 2025 to rapidly refurbish Camp J, a shuttered, notorious solitary-confinement unit at Louisiana State Penitentiary Angola. Initially framed as addressing state prison overcrowding, the facility was revealed in early September to be designated for federal ICE immigration detention. Renamed "Camp 57," it will house over 400 immigration detainees. The Trump administration and DHS officials, including Secretary Kristi Noem, promoted the facility as housing "the worst of the worst" immigrant detainees, leveraging Angola's reputation for brutality and its plantation-era history to associate undocumented immigrants with criminals.

Supporting reports

• Florida college Republicans group chat with racist, antisemitic, and homophobic messages leaked to media — Leaked WhatsApp conversations from a Florida International University College Republicans group chat, created by Abel Alexander Carvajal in September 2025, revealed racist slurs (N-word used 400+ times), antisemitic remarks, homophobic comments, and calls for violence against Black people. Participants included William Bejerano, Dariel Gonzalez, and Ian Valdes. The chat referenced Nazi ideology and white supremacist concepts. Republican party officials, including Miami-Dade GOP chair Kevin Cooper and state senators, called for resignations and expulsions from party leadership.

Supporting reports

• Trump administration plans to rebrand Department of Defense as Department of War — The Wall Street Journal reported that the Trump administration is drawing up plans to rebrand the Department of Defense as the Department of War. The change could be accomplished through an act of Congress, but the White House is considering other avenues to make the change.
• Trump signed executive order renaming Department of Defense to Department of War — In September 2025, President Trump signed an executive order changing the name of the Department of Defense to the Department of War. At the signing ceremony, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth stated the department would focus on "maximum lethality, not tepid legality" and would pursue "violent effect, not politically correct" operations, emphasizing "restoring the warrior ethos" and "raising up warriors, not just defenders."
• Trump signed Executive Order 14347 authorizing secondary titles "Department of War" and "Secretary of War" for Defense Department officials, with recommendation for permanent statutory renaming within 60 days. — President Trump signed Executive Order 14347 on September 5, 2025, authorizing the Secretary of Defense and subordinate officials to use secondary titles "Secretary of War" and "Department of War" in official correspondence, public communications, and ceremonial contexts. The order invokes historical precedent (the original 1789 Department of War) and frames the renaming as signaling strength and resolve. It directs the Secretary to submit within 60 days a recommendation for permanent legislative and executive actions to formally rename the Department of Defense to the Department of War. Statutory references remain controlling until changed by law.
• Trump signs executive order rebranding Pentagon as Department of War — Donald Trump signed an executive order on Friday rebranding the Department of Defense as the Department of War, using a secondary title to circumvent congressional approval requirements. The administration redirected the Pentagon's website from defense.gov to war.gov. Trump justified the move as reverting to the department's original 1789–1947 name, claiming it better reflects military victories. Congressional approval would be required for a permanent name change, though Republican legislators introduced legislation to formalize the switch.
• Trump signs executive order renaming Department of Defense to "Department of War" — Trump signed an executive order on Friday authorizing the renaming of the Department of Defense to the "Department of War." The order was referenced in Trump's subsequent Truth Social post threatening Chicago. The renaming represents a symbolic shift in framing military and enforcement operations and was invoked in the context of immigration enforcement against a domestic city.
• Trump signs executive order to rebrand Department of Defense as "Department of War" — Donald Trump signed an executive order authorizing the U.S. Department of Defense to rebrand itself as the "Department of War," designating it as a "secondary title" to circumvent the need for congressional approval. The order instructs the executive branch to use "Department of War" in communications and permits Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to use the title "Secretary of War." The order also directs Hegseth to recommend legislative measures for permanent renaming. Trump claimed the change would project military aggression and referenced historical victory under the old name.
• Trump issues executive order authorizing secondary titles renaming Department of Defense as Department of War — President Trump issued Executive Order "Restoring the United States Department of War" on September 5, 2025, authorizing the Secretary of Defense to use the secondary title "Secretary of War" and permitting the Department of Defense to be referred to as the "Department of War" in official correspondence, communications, and non-statutory documents. The order directs the Secretary to submit recommendations within 60 days on permanent legislative and executive actions needed to formally rename the department. Statutory references remain unchanged pending future legislation.
• White House issued executive order renaming Department of Defense to Department of War — The White House issued Executive Order 14347 on September 5, 2025, authorizing the Secretary of Defense to use the secondary title "Secretary of War" and permitting the Department of Defense to be referred to as the Department of War in official communications, ceremonial contexts, and non-statutory documents. The order directs the Secretary to submit recommendations within 60 days on permanent legislative and executive actions required to formally rename the department. Statutory references remain unchanged pending future law.
• White House issues fact sheet on executive order restoring "Department of War" as secondary title for Department of Defense — The White House published a fact sheet on September 5, 2025, describing an executive order signed by President Trump authorizing the Secretary of Defense and subordinate officials to use secondary titles including "Secretary of War" and "Department of War" in official communications. The order directs all executive departments and agencies to recognize these titles and instructs the Secretary of War to recommend legislative and executive actions for a permanent rename of the Department of Defense to the Department of War. The fact sheet frames the change as projecting strength and deterrence.