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Ben Wolfgang

Ben Wolfgang

bwolfgang@washingtontimes.com

Ben Wolfgang is a national security correspondent at The Washington Times, a senior member of its Threat Status team, and the host and producer of the award-winning Threat Status Podcast. Ben covers national security, foreign policy, military affairs, the defense industry and the rapidly evolving landscape of military technology.
A Pennsylvania native, he joined The Washington Times in 2011 after serving as a political reporter at The Republican-Herald in Pottsville, Pa. Over the course of his career, Ben has covered the White House, Congress, and four presidential campaigns.
His reporting has earned recognition from some of journalism's most respected organizations, including the Virginia Press Association and the Society of Professional Journalists' Washington, D.C. Chapter, among other honors.
Ben has interviewed heads of state, chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, senior military commanders, cabinet secretaries, senior government officials, and the CEOs of many of the nation's largest and most influential defense companies.
Ben is a frequent guest on broadcast media, with appearances on C-SPAN, the Sirius XM POTUS channel, and other outlets.
He can be reached at bwolfgang@washingtontimes.com.

Articles by Ben Wolfgang

Capt. Philip Gunn participates in a flyover during the interment ceremony of retired Brig. Gen. Robinson Risner on Jan. 23, 2014, at Arlington National Cemetery. (Image: Air Force) ** FILE **

Pentagon takes over federal background checks

The Pentagon on Tuesday officially took over the federal background-check system, with a new agency inside the Defense Department now charged with reducing a massive backlog of clearances for employees and contractors.

October 2, 2019
Chinese military vehicles carrying DF-17 ballistic missiles roll during a parade to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the founding of Communist China in Beijing, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2019. Trucks carrying weapons including a nuclear-armed missile designed to evade U.S. defenses rumbled through Beijing as the Communist Party celebrated its 70th anniversary in power with a parade Tuesday that showcased China's ambition as a rising global force. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

China military parade a warning to Pentagon of waning dominance

The rest of the world was watching the pomp, circumstance and speeches celebrating China's 70th anniversary Tuesday, but military analysts were glued to another spectacle in the heart of Beijing: the arsenal of cutting-edge weaponry capable of challenging U.S. military might for decades to come.

October 1, 2019
In this Monday, Sept. 23, 2019, photo, Afghan security forces stand guard in front of an election poster for presidential candidate Ashraf Ghani in Kabul, Afghanistan. Millions of Afghans are expected to go to the polls on Saturday to elect a new president, despite an upsurge of violence in the weeks since the collapse of a U.S.-Taliban deal to end Americas longest war, and the Taliban warning voters to say away from the polls. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)

Taliban threatens Afghanistan elections after U.S. peace talks collapse

The collapse of peace talks in Afghanistan has left the U.S. with few military options as intense fighting resumes, while the near complete lack of public and political support for an influx of ground troops means the Trump administration must search for new ways to put pressure back onto the Taliban.

September 26, 2019
Defense Secretary Mark Esper speaks during a ceremony in observance of the 18th anniversary of the September 11th attacks at the Pentagon in Washington, Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2019. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)

Defense Secretary Mark Esper pushing to lower civilian casualties

The Pentagon reportedly is crafting a major new policy designed to cut down on civilian casualties resulting from U.S. military operations and will specifically address the growing trend of innocent deaths caused by allies who have bought U.S. weapons.

September 25, 2019
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo delivering remarks to members of the media during his meeting with Brazilian Foreign Minister Ernesto Araujo at the Department of State in Washington, Friday, Sept. 13, 2019. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

Mike Pompeo: ‘World’s responsibility’ to confront Iran

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Sunday said it's the "world's responsibility" to work together and rein in an increasingly hostile Iran, again stressing that the U.S. wants to avoid military action in favor of diplomacy.

September 22, 2019
Saudi military spokesman Col. Turki al-Malki displays what he describes as an Iranian cruise missile and drones used in an attack this weekend that targeted the heart of Saudi Arabia's oil industry, during a press conference in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2019. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil)

Oil attack ‘unquestionably sponsored by Iran,’ Saudi Arabia says

Last weekend's devastating attack on Saudi Arabia's oil infrastructure was "unquestionably sponsored by Iran," officials in Riyadh said Wednesday morning as they made the case against Tehran and potentially began laying the groundwork for military retaliation.

September 18, 2019
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, right, Russia's President Vladimir Putin, left, and Iran's President Hassan Rouhani arrive for a news conference in Ankara, Turkey, Monday, Sept. 16, 2019. The leaders of Russia, Iran and Turkey met in the Turkish capital to discuss the situation in Syria, with the aim of halting fighting in the northwest of the country and finding a lasting political solution to the 8 1/2 year civil war. (AP Photo/Burhan Ozbilici)

Donald Trump rejects Hassan Rouhani meeting, seeks Iran ‘deterrence’

The Trump administration dispatched Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to Saudi Arabia and hinted at a crackdown on Iran for its suspected role in drone attacks that decimated oil fields east of Riyadh over the weekend, saying it has no intention of backing off its maximum pressure campaign and may go beyond economic sanctions to "restore deterrence" in dealing with Tehran.

September 17, 2019
Smoke rises as Kabul residents set fire to part of the Green Village compound that has been attacked frequently, a day after a Taliban suicide attack in Kabul, Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2019. An interior ministry spokesman said some hundreds of foreigners were rescued after the attack targeted the compound, which houses several international organizations and guesthouses. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)

Taliban strongest since Afghanistan war started in 2001

Afghanistan's Taliban militants steadily amassed power and territory throughout its high-stakes, yearlong peace talks with the Trump administration, and they are now stronger than at any other point in the post-9/11 era, say military observers, who note a systematic plan to gain legitimacy, foment fear through violence and undercut the elected government in Kabul.

September 9, 2019
Smoke rises as angry Kabul residents set fire to part of the Green Village compound that has been attacked frequently, a day after a Taliban suicide attack in Kabul, Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2019. An interior ministry spokesman said some hundreds of foreigners were rescued after the attack targeted the compound, which houses several international organizations and guesthouses. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)

Taliban warns: More Americans are about to die

The Trump administration's decision to call off peace talks in Afghanistan will lead directly to more American deaths, the Taliban warned late Sunday in a shocking message that promised new, deadly attacks.

September 9, 2019
An Army carry team moves a transfer case containing the remains of Sgt. 1st Class Elis Barreto Ortiz, 34, from Morovis, Puerto Rico, past Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Saturday, Sept. 7, 2019, at Dover Air Force Base, Del. According to the Department of Defense, Ortiz was killed in action Sept. 5, when a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle in Kabul, Afghanistan. Ortiz was supporting Operation Freedom's Sentinel. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen)

Mike Pompeo recalls Afghanistan peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad,

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Sunday that the Trump administration has recalled its envoy to peace talks with the Taliban, dealing a potential death blow to negotiations that hit a low point in recent days following a suicide bombing by the militant group that killed an American soldier near the U.S. Embassy in Kabul.

September 8, 2019
FILE - In a Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2016 file photo, then-Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks in Charlotte, N.C. States are expected to begin canceling GOP presidential caucuses or primaries as part of the party’s effort to shut out the Trump primary challengers, one door at a time. (AP Photo/ Evan Vucci, File)

Trump calls off secret Camp David peace talks with Taliban leaders

President Trump has called off talks with Taliban leaders planned for Sunday at Camp David, he tweeted late Saturday, saying that he scrapped what would have been a historic meeting after yet another U.S. soldier died during a Taliban attack in Afghanistan this week.

September 7, 2019