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Ben Wolfgang

Ben Wolfgang

bwolfgang@washingtontimes.com

Ben Wolfgang is a National Security Correspondent for The Washington Times. His reporting is regularly featured in the daily Threat Status newsletter.
Previously, he covered energy and the environment, Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign in 2016, and also spent two years as a White House correspondent during the Obama administration.
Before coming to The Times in 2011, Ben worked as political reporter at The Republican-Herald in Pottsville, Pa.
He can be reached at bwolfgang@washingtontimes.com.

Articles by Ben Wolfgang

‘Don’t frack with our water,’ say foes

"Don't frack with our water!" For those who see a darker side to the Marcellus Shale natural gas drilling industry transforming these parts, that has become the new local rallying cry.

May 22, 2011
A fracking operation in Washington, Pa., has brought a demand for workers from across the country, and has suddenly transformed a sleepy Pittsburgh suburb into a boomtown. (Andrew S. Geraci/The Washington Times)

Shale motherlode brings world of change

Big energy companies have set up shop to tap the Marcellus Shale, a massive chunk of marine sedimentary rock stretching from the Finger Lakes region of New York as far south as Kentucky and Tennessee, holding within its subterranean grip vast deposits of natural gas.

May 22, 2011

Pa. intends ‘clear message’ with fine

The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection on Tuesday levied the largest fine in state history against an oil or gas company, sending what it called a "clear message" to Chesapeake Energy after several recent violations.

May 17, 2011

‘Healthier’ school lunch at what cost?

If the federal government gets its way, critics are warning, school lunches will be more expensive and less appetizing and ultimately will leave school districts footing the bill for costly food going down the garbage disposal.

May 16, 2011

Uniform education standards seen timely

The push by states to implement a "common core" of standards by 2014 presents an opportunity to revamp student assessment methods and correct problems that have plagued the system for the past decade, according to researchers.

May 16, 2011

Schools struggle to teach 9/11 to students too young to remember

The death of Osama bin Laden was the ultimate teachable moment, but it has left teachers, parents and educators scrambling to tell the story of Sept. 11 and the career of the world's most wanted terrorist to a new generation of schoolchildren — many of whom were not even born when the planes crashed into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

May 10, 2011

For-profit colleges defend their stature

These aren't your parents' colleges. There are typically no sprawling campuses, no fraternities or sororities, no students reading books under trees and no sports teams.

May 4, 2011
** FILE ** Thomas J. Donohue, president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

Chamber pushes GOP-backed reforms for nation’s schools

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday called on Congress to speed up its efforts to reform federal education policy and released a broad outline of priorities it says are crucial to student success across the country.

May 4, 2011
ASSOCIATED PRESS Former Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings, here in 2008, says a loss of bipartisan cooperation is hampering current education reform efforts.

Spellings: Politics, lack of knowledge hurt school reform

Ten years ago, former President George W. Bush's signature education initiative, the No Child Left Behind Act, garnered strong bipartisan support and passed the Senate on an 87-10 vote. As Congress now starts work on a policy overhaul, that "planetary alignment" between the parties is nowhere to be found.

May 2, 2011
Associated Press Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels chats with student Cree DeDeaux, 14, during a tour of the Charles A. Tindley Accelerated School in Indianapolis on April 15. Indiana on Wednesday passed the largest school-voucher bill in the nation's history. Mr. Daniels is expected to sign the measure into law.

States leaving feds behind on school reforms

A growing number of states are not waiting for the federal government's lead in overhauling education. This year alone, 36 states have either passed or are considering comprehensive legislation on school vouchers, tax credits and other reform measures.

April 28, 2011

Report: States’ funding for pre-K taking hit

Preschool programs have become the victims of budget shortfalls across the nation, and the Obama administration's education point man said Monday he fears it's only going to get worse for the 1.3 million youngsters who benefit from them.

April 26, 2011

‘Moribund’ Senate frustrates members of both parties

A few days after 10 of his colleagues wrapped up a trip to the Asian gambling hub Macau, Sen. Mark Kirk warned that the Senate has become "moribund" and is not doing enough to address the nation's many challenges.

April 24, 2011

CEOs warn of subpar school standards

A group of top business leaders warned in a new report Thursday that U.S. schools have set a standard for their students that's too low and that subpar expectations put the country in danger of falling even further behind other nations in reading and math proficiency.

April 21, 2011

Report: For-profit colleges ‘defraud’ students

For-profit colleges, already the target of Senate Democrats, took another beating in a report released Wednesday by an education trade publication that says such institutions "defraud" young people.

April 20, 2011

Budget fight clouds science, tech research plans

With Democrats and Republicans still far apart on how to deal with the nation's debt and fiscal woes, a cloud of uncertainty has settled over the nation's scientific and technology research sectors over the size of their own budgets in the years to come.

April 19, 2011

Walker defends budget decisions

Giving as well as he got, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker on Thursday traveled to Capitol Hill to defend his efforts to balance his state's budget by renegotiating public-worker contracts and eliminating most collective bargaining rights for many state employees.

April 14, 2011