Donald Trump wants to rename Veterans Day. Credit: Win McNamee / Getty
Donald Trump announced plans to rename Veterans Day, saying Americans must “start celebrating our victories again.”
Late Thursday night on Truth Social, Trump said he’d rename Veterans Day to “Victory Day for World War I,” claiming the U.S. should start “celebrating our victories again.”
“We won both Wars. No one matched us in strength, bravery, or brilliance,” he wrote.
“But we don’t celebrate anything because we don’t have real leaders anymore. That changes now!”
Trump also plans to rename Victory in Europe Day (May 8) as “Victory in World War II Day.”
He said the update would reflect the U.S.’s outsized role in defeating Nazi Germany:
“We did more than any other country — by far — to win World War II.”
Trump’s push to rename Veterans Day has confused many, according to Politico, even as it energizes his base.
The U.S. created Armistice Day in 1919 to mark the end of World War I.
In the 1950s, the holiday expanded to honor all American war veterans — from WWII to Vietnam, the Gulf War, and more.
By 1968, Veterans Day became a federal holiday — a moment to solemnly recognize those who served.
May 8, widely known as Victory in Europe Day, isn’t a federal holiday in the U.S.
And while that date marks the end of fighting in Europe, WWII didn’t officially end for the U.S. until Japan surrendered in September 1945 — after the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Trump’s claim that the U.S. “did more than any other country” to win WWII could trigger global backlash — especially from Russia.
Russia calls its WWII fight the “Great Patriotic War,” honoring massive losses: about 9 million soldiers and 19 million civilians died on the Eastern Front.
The UK also paid a heavy price, enduring Germany’s relentless Blitz bombing campaign and widespread destruction.
