Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth asserted, "We won WWI, and we won WWII, not with the Department of Defense, but with a War Department." Which critical element of America"s victory in the world wars does this statement overlook?

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Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth asserted, "We won WWI, and we won WWII, not with the Department of Defense, but with a War Department." Which critical element of America"s victory in the world wars does this statement overlook?

Accepted Answer

Hegseth"s quip ignores the fact that U.S. victories in both world wars rested on unprecedented industrial mobilization rather than departmental branding. During World War II, the War Production Board—established by Executive Order 9024 in January 1942—channeled private factories into war production, overseeing $183 billion in armaments (about 40 percent of global munitions output) and turning auto plants into tank and aircraft factories ). From 1941 to 1945, American industry rolled out 2.4 million trucks, 300 000 aircraft, and 88 400 tanks, producing more military aircraft in 1944 than Germany, Japan, Britain, and the Soviet Union combined ). Allied coordination—through bodies like the Combined Production and Resources Board—plus geographic security on the U.S. mainland and coalitions with Britain and the Soviet Union, delivered the material edge that truly won the wars.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth asserted, "We won WWI, and we won WWII, not with the Department of Defense, but with a War Department." Which critical element of America"s victory in the world wars does this statement overlook?

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