Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth restored a historic American military base without taking action on one in the Lone Star State.
“Bragg is back!” Hegseth said, announcing the name change via X.
Bragg is back! I just signed a memorandum reversing the naming of Fort Liberty back to Fort Bragg. pic.twitter.com/EGgZNHK72x
— Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth (@SecDef) February 11, 2025
The base had been renamed Fort Liberty during a wave of name changes, involving everything from institutions named after Confederate Generals to the official name of the State of Rhode Island after the 2020 death of George Floyd in Minnesota.
The restoration of Fort Bragg raises questions, such as, “Why did Hegseth not also restore the name of Fort Hood in Texas?”
Notably, Hegseth used a legal sidestep to restore Bragg’s name.
Both General Braxton Bragg and General John Bell Hood served for the Confederacy during the American Civil War. In 2021, the then-Democrat-controlled Congress banned the naming of military bases after Confederates.
Hegseth got around this by renaming Fort Bragg after Private First Class Roland L. Bragg, who “served with great distinction during World War II,” according to the memo ordering the name change.
There are equivalent tools available to Hegseth to rename Fort Hood.
The Dallas Express searched various archives of war medal recipients and found many men bearing the last name Hood who served with distinction. According to the award’s Hall of Honor, 27 men named Hood received the Purple Heart. There are also Distinguished Service Cross recipients with that last name.
The Dallas Express contacted the Department of Defense to inquire whether Hegseth would use similar means to restore Fort Hood’s name.
A spokesman responded, “We have nothing further to announce at this time.”