W.J. Hennigan

Washington, D.C.

Correspondent at The New York Times Opinion

correspondent, @nytopinion.

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Articles

Trump Wants the Military to Be More Like Trump

2 weeks ago | nytimes.com | W.J. Hennigan

No president in modern history has done more to put the military in the middle of political and cultural crossfire than Donald Trump.
6/5/25 National Security News and Commentary

3 weeks ago | myemail.constantcontact.com | Stephen Kalin |Michael Gordon |Aaron MacLean |W.J. Hennigan

Quotes of the Day:“A body of men holding themselves accountable to nobody ought not to be trusted by anybody.”– Thomas Paine“You should not be afraid of someone who has a library and reads many books; you should fear someone who has only one book; and he considers it sacred, but he has never read it.”– Friedrich Nietzsche“You do not have to burn books to destroy a culture. Just get people to sort reading them.”– Ray Bradbury1.
Ukraine’s Attack Exposed America’s Achilles’ Heel

3 weeks ago | flipboard.com | W.J. Hennigan

7 hours agoThe Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4), set to take off from Nasa's Kennedy Space Center in Florida next week, will be piloted by an Indian as it soars towards the International Space Station (ISS). Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla of the Indian air force is among the four-member multi-country crew of Ax-4 that …
Ukraine's Attack Exposed America's Achilles' Heel

3 weeks ago | nytimes.com | W.J. Hennigan

It turns out Volodymyr Zelensky did have another card to play. Ukraine's astonishing drone attack on military airfields and critical assets deep inside Russia on Sunday blindsided the Kremlin, destroyed at least a dozen strategic bombers and marked a seismic shift in modern warfare. The mission, dubbed Operation Spider's Web, was a fresh reminder to leaders of the world's most advanced militaries that the toughest threats they face today are not limited to their regular rivals with expensive gear.
Nuclear War Avoided, Again. But Next Time?

1 month ago | flipboard.com | W.J. Hennigan

10 hours agoPost-Sindoor, A New Reality for India and PakistanTopic: SecurityBlog Brand: Silk Road RivalriesRegion: AsiaTags: Asim Munir, India, Kashmir, Narendra Modi, and PakistanPost-Sindoor, A New Reality …15 hours agoIndia pushes back on Trump claiming credit for India-Pakistan ceasefireThe president boasted about the strategy he claimed to use with India and Pakistan.
Nuclear War Avoided, Again. But Next Time?

1 month ago | nytimes.com | W.J. Hennigan

After four days of exchanging airstrikes and drone attacks on military infrastructure brought India and Pakistan to the precipice of war, these nuclear-armed nations are holding to a tenuous cease-fire. The world may have sidestepped a disaster.
Pete Hegseth Blunders Into His Forever War

2 months ago | nytimes.com | W.J. Hennigan

President Trump came into office promising to disentangle the U.S. military from its costly forever wars in the Middle East. Three months in, he is embroiled in the same sort of open-ended military campaign that plagued his predecessors, and one that holds the potential for wider war with Iran.
The Message Pete Hegseth Sends the Troops

2 months ago | nytimes.com | W.J. Hennigan

Mr. Hegseth, so far, has insisted he didn't do anything wrong in the ordeal, which began March 24 after The Atlantic's editor in chief, Jeffrey Goldberg revealed he had been inadvertently added to a Signal chat by Michael Waltz, President Trump's national security adviser. The text exchange Mr. Goldberg published two days later, which was among senior Trump administration national security officials - all of them political, none military - discussed preparations for a military operation in Yemen.
Trump Is Reshaping the Nuclear Landscape

Mar 12, 2025 | nytimes.com | W.J. Hennigan

President Trump's deference to Russia, his unprecedented rebuke of Volodymyr Zelensky and his no-holds-barred approach in prodding European partners to spend more on their military budgets are having an unintended impact among America's longtime allies: a possible nuclear free-for-all.
Nuclear Weapons: The Price

Oct 13, 2024 | transcend.org | W.J. Hennigan

W.J. Hennigan | The New York Times – TRANSCEND Media Service The United States is set to spend an estimated $1.7 trillion over 30 years to revamp its own nuclear arsenal. 10 Oct 2024 – To understand how the USA is preparing for its nuclear future, follow Melissa Durkee’s fifth-grade students as they shuffle into Room 38 at Preston Veterans’ Memorial School in Preston, Conn.