The Pentagon will change the title of the North Carolina army base Fort Liberty again to Fort Bragg, fulfilling a marketing campaign pledge by President Trump whereas honoring a special eponym.
Protection Secretary Pete Hegseth on Monday signed an order to revive the title of the sprawling Military base to Fort Bragg after it was renamed Fort Liberty in June 2023 as a part of a congressionally mandated rule to rename installations honoring Accomplice generals.
Hegseth, who signed the memorandum renaming the bottom whereas flying to Stuttgart, Germany, stated the brand new moniker pays tribute to Roland L. Bragg, an Military paratrooper who was awarded a Silver Star for actions in the course of the Battle of the Bulge in World Conflict II.
“That’s right. Bragg is back,” Hegseth stated after signing the memo in a video posted to the social platform X.
Pentagon press secretary John Ullyot stated in a press release the change “underscores the installation’s legacy of recognizing those who have demonstrated extraordinary service and sacrifice for the nation.”
The sprawling set up close to Fayetteville was initially named after Braxton Bragg, a Accomplice basic from Warrenton, N.C., who misplaced a number of pricey Civil Conflict battles earlier than leaving the Military to run a sugar plantation that used slaves.
One of many largest army installations on this planet, Fort Bragg is dwelling to roughly 52,000 personnel and the Military’s 82nd Airborne Division and U.S. Military Particular Operations Command. Established throughout WWI, it’s identified for with the ability to quickly deploy troops abroad.
The swap follows greater than 5 years of political jockeying to rid army installations of names honoring Confederates.
The fiscal 2020 Nationwide Protection Authorization Act (NDAA) first banned the Protection Division from naming belongings after Accomplice symbols, adopted by the 2021 NDAA that mandated a fee to advocate new names for 9 army bases.
President Trump in late 2020 vetoed the later protection invoice partly over the base-renaming provision, however was overridden by Congress.
Trump in October vowed to revert Fort Liberty to Fort Bragg whereas on the marketing campaign path in North Carolina, an electoral battleground state.
“We did win two world wars from Fort Bragg, right?” he stated at a rally in Fayetteville. “We’re going to get it back. We’re going to bring our country back.”
Hegseth, who has stated he served at Fort Bragg whereas within the Military, additionally had spoken out in opposition to the title swap, arguing the bottom ought to by no means have been renamed “because legacy matters.”
And on his first official day as Pentagon chief, he referred to as Fort Liberty and Fort Moore by their earlier names, Fort Bragg and Fort Benning.
