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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

SAN DIEGO (Nov. 1, 2019) Capt. Brett Crozier addresses the crew for the first time as commanding officer of the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71). (U.S. Navy photo)

Brett Crozier, captain of USS Roosevelt, given hero’s send-off after firing

Hours after being fired, USS Theodore Roosevelt Capt. Brett Crozier was given a hero's sendoff Thursday night by the sailors aboard his coronavirus-stricken vessel, raising fresh questions about how the Navy's decision to remove him from his post will play among rank-and-file service members.

April 3, 2020
A journalist records speakers at a press briefing following the arrival of the USNS Comfort, a naval hospital ship with a 1,000 bed-capacity, Monday, March 30, 2020, at Pier 90 in New York. The ship will be used to treat patients who do not have the new coronavirus as land-based hospitals fill up to capacity with those that do. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)

Navy may build two hospital ships, Trump says

The military hospital ships USNS Comfort and USNS Mercy are proving so valuable in the nation's fight against the coronavirus that the U.S. may build two more like them, President Trump said Wednesday.

April 1, 2020
Marines with Battery N, 5th Battalion, 14th Marine Regiment, fire an M777 A2 howitzer during a series of integrated firing exercises at the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Centter Twentynine Palms' Quakenbush Training Area April 26, 2013. (credit: U.S. Marine Corps)

U.S. military ‘readiness’ at risk as coronavirus rips through ranks

The rapid spread of the coronavirus through the ranks has sparked one of the greatest challenges U.S. military leaders have faced in decades: how to maintain readiness and monitor enemy threats while simultaneously shielding men and women in uniform around the world from a deadly health risk.

March 31, 2020
U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Richard Sippl, UH-1Y Venom, flight crew chief assigned to Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 169 (HMLA-169) fires a 7.62mm GAU-17/A Minigun July 22, 2012, during a live fire combat training mission over the Pohakuloa Training Area, (PTA) Hawaii during Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) Exercise 2012. HMLA-169 is part of the aviation combat element of special purpose Marine air-ground task force three. Twenty-two nations, more than 40 ships and submarines, more than 200 aircraft and 25,000 personnel are participating in RIMPAC exercise from Jun. 29 to Aug. 3, in and around the Hawaiian Islands. The world's largest international maritime exercise, RIMPAC provides a unique training opportunity that helps participants foster and sustain the cooperative relationships that are critical to ensuring the safety of sea lanes and security on the worlds oceans. RIMPAC 2012 is the 23rd exercise in the series that began in 1971. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Michael R. Holzworth)

Marine Corps cuts helicopters, tanks for possible China conflict

The Marine Corps plans to give up its tanks, dramatically remake its artillery batteries, cut its helicopter fleet and take a host of other "radical" steps in arguably the most sweeping American military overhaul in a century -- all with the goal of preparing for a potential 21st-century conflict with China.

March 30, 2020
This undated file photo shows the classic World War I recruiting poster created by illustrator James Montgomery Flagg. Thursday, April 6, 2017, marks the 100th anniversary of the U.S. entry into World War I, and some of the innovations that were developed or came into wide use during the conflict are still with us today, including this iconic image of Uncle Sam pointing, with the message "I WANT YOU for the U.S. ARMY." (AP Photo, File)

Military recruiters explore virtual recruitment due to coronavirus closures

Military recruiting is poised to enter a "new phase" as the COVID-19 pandemic forces the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps to shift away from traditional face-to-face outreach in favor of a virtual approach as the services prepare to fall short of their manpower goals this year.

March 25, 2020
In this photo provided by South Korea Defense Ministry, South Korea's Hyunmoo II Missile system, left, and U.S. Army Tactical Missile System, right, fire missiles during the combined military exercise between the two countries against North Korea at an undisclosed location in South Korea, Saturday, July 29, 2017. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said Saturday the second flight test of an intercontinental ballistic missile demonstrated his country can hit the U.S. mainland, hours after the launch left analysts concluding that a wide swath of the United States, including Los Angeles and Chicago, is now in range of North Korean weapons. (South Korea Defense Ministry via AP)

U.S. military tests cutting-edge hypersonic weapon in Hawaii

The U.S. military successfully tested a groundbreaking hypersonic weapon in Hawaii this week, Pentagon officials said Friday in the latest sign that America may be catching up to its global rivals in development and fielding of the 21st-century technology.

March 20, 2020
In this Jan. 25, 2020, file photo a Boeing 777X airplane takes off on its first flight with the Olympic Mountains in the background at Paine Field in Everett, Wash. Boeing Co. reports financial results on Wednesday, Jan. 29. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File) **FILE**

Defense industry braces for unknown fallout from virus

The vaunted U.S. military-industrial machine is venturing into the unknown as the coronavirus continues its spread across the country, sector leaders said Wednesday, with the global pandemic threatening to slow down innovation and disrupt key supply chains.

March 18, 2020
Defense Secretary Mark Esper said his department is prepared to make available respiratory masks and military ventilators to treat patients. (Associated Press)

Pentagon willing but wary over role in U.S. coronavirus fight

President Trump is facing increased pressure to enlist the military in America's battle against the coronavirus, but Pentagon officials are warning against the idea that the armed forces can provide the ultimate answer and law scholars say complex legal questions could await the commander in chief if he pursues such a strategy to its fullest.

March 17, 2020