U.S. News
Trump Declares Two New National Holidays—But Critics Say It’s Historically Inaccurate
By Jake Beardslee · May 7, 2025
Trump Declares New Holidays for World War Victories
President Donald Trump has declared May 8 and November 11 as new national commemorative holidays marking U.S. victories in World War II and World War I. Announced via Truth Social, Trump framed the move as long overdue recognition: “We won two World Wars, but we never took credit for it.” Gage Skidmore / Wikimedia
Confusion Emerges Over Conflict With Veterans Day
However, the proclamations sparked immediate confusion, particularly because November 11 is already celebrated as Veterans Day—a federally recognized holiday honoring all American military veterans. U.S. Army National Guard photo by Staff Sgt. Sebastian Rothwyn / Wikimedia
White House Clarifies Veterans Day Will Remain Unchanged
While Trump’s statement initially appeared to suggest a renaming of Veterans Day to "Victory Day for World War I," White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt later clarified to ABC News that “we are not renaming Veteran’s Day.” She explained the administration’s intent is to layer new symbolic observances on top of existing ones. Gage Skidmore / Wikimedia
No Federal Closures Planned for New Holidays, Trump Says
Despite referring to them as “national holidays,” Trump specified that these dates would not be added as nonworking federal holidays. “We will not be closing the Country for these two very important Holidays… because we already have too many Holidays in America,” he posted, adding, “We were Workers then, and we are Workers now!” The White House / Wikimedia
Critics Question Historical Accuracy of Victory Dates
Critics have pointed out the historical inconsistency in choosing May 8 as the sole recognition for World War II victory. While Germany surrendered on that date in 1945, hostilities with Japan continued until mid-August. Former MSNBC host Keith Olbermann responded in a post on X, “We won World War II on August 15, 1945 when the Japanese surrendered. Trump is a complete moron.” @KeithOlbermann / X
New Holidays Are Symbolic Only, No Legislation Filed
As it stands, the designations remain ceremonial and would require congressional legislation to become formal federal holidays. No such legislative effort has yet been proposed. Ian Hutchinson / Unsplash