The War Horse

The War Horse is a celebrated nonprofit newsroom recognized for its reliable journalism that explores the human effects of military service. Our dedicated team works to ensure accountability from those in power, supports democratic values, and enhances awareness of the real implications of military service.

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One Trillion Dollars?! Nine Charts to Help Demystify the Pentagon’s Budget

3 weeks ago | thewarhorse.org | Mike Frankel |Hrisanthi Pickett

May 13, 2025 | Mike Frankel and Hrisanthi PickettOne trillion!It’s an exclamation-point-inducing, mind-jarringly inconceivable number for most humans. Start counting once every second and you’ll need more than 31,700 years to get there. It’s also the ALL-CAPS amount of money President Trump wants to spend on defense—amid the frenzied downsizing of the rest of the federal government—in fiscal year 2026.
Vietnam refugee finds veterans that helped her leave, resettle in America

1 month ago | thewarhorse.org | Jennifer Brookland

Fifty years ago, two-year-old Phan Kim Phuong was handed up into a military aircraft, her future a near-complete blank save one truth: She would not grow up in Vietnam. Saigon was falling to the North Vietnamese, people were scrambling to get out, and unbeknownst to the little girl, her family, her future, and her country were all about to be irrevocably altered.
This Company is Spending Millions to Profit Off Veterans’ Benefits. Why Won’t Lawmakers Stop It?

1 month ago | thewarhorse.org | Leah Rosenbaum

Protected: This Company is Spending Millions to Profit Off Veterans’ Benefits. Why Won’t Lawmakers Stop It? This content is password protected. To view it please enter your password below:Protected: This Company is Spending Millions to Profit Off Veterans’ Benefits. Why Won’t Lawmakers Stop It?
The Hidden Costs of Caregiving: Meet the Kids Taking Care of Wounded Veterans

2 months ago | thewarhorse.org | Jennifer Brookland

It was horrifying every time it happened, every time Kylie Briest’s father choked on his food and started to turn blue, every time her mom, Jenny, sprang out of her own dinner chair to attempt the Heimlich maneuver on her husband.
What Do Firings of DOD and VA Inspectors General Mean for Military Whistleblowers?

Mar 4, 2025 | thewarhorse.org | Hope Seck

Three weeks after President Donald Trump’s extraordinary purge of inspectors general across the federal government, a document arrived in Navy Lt. Cmdr. Shannon Bencs’ email inbox.
On Sale for $2: A Soldier's Act of Heroism, Right Next to Used Books and an Old Toaster

Feb 26, 2025 | thewarhorse.org | Audrey Pavia

Every Sunday, a swap meet takes over the parking lot of the VanBuren Drive-In movie theater in Riverside, California. During one visit, I had wandered away from my friends, who were combing through old dishes, looking for rare midcentury china to add to their collection. As I strolled through aisles past folding tables and blankets, my eyes roamed over the vast assortment of toasters, empty picture frames, coffee mugs, and well-worn hardcover books.
They Fought in Iraq’s Bloodiest Battle. Will Their Kids Be the Next Generation of Marines?

Dec 19, 2024 | thewarhorse.org | Mike Frankel

Today, when more than 300 second lieutenants graduate from the intensive training known as The Basic School at Quantico, Virginia, Aaron and Jennifer Cunningham will beam from the audience as their only son, Mason, takes his next step in becoming a Marine Corps officer. But last month, on the day after Veterans Day, their feelings were more complicated when Jennifer’s phone lit up with her son’s number. Retired Marine Col.
My Army Service Required Embracing the Suck—and Squeezing in a Few Good Laughs

Nov 26, 2024 | thewarhorse.org | Jonathan Ore

Serving in the military is a lot of things. Absurd and funny are definitely part of the story. When people think about service, they think about combat or embracing the suck, and they are not wrong. However, my experience in the Army was filled with fun stories that didn’t teach me a lesson or give me the spicy memories that made me wake up late at night in a pool of sweat. Many times, it was just fun. Let’s be honest: Unless you were career military, most of our service took place when we were kids.
My Platoon’s Fight To Survive—and Heal From—The Bloodiest Battle in Iraq

Nov 14, 2024 | thewarhorse.org | Thomas Brennan

My Platoon’s Fight To Survive—and Heal From—the Bloodiest Battle in IraqBy Thomas J. BrennanNovember 14, 2024A Caution To Readers: This story is an unvarnished, unsanitized firsthand account of the Second Battle of Fallujah that includes descriptions and photos that are candidly disturbing. In telling this story, I promised my fellow Marines that I would not sugarcoat our experience. Narrow metal cages sit empty in a dark, damp corner of the execution room.
Video: My Platoon Recalls Fallujah, Iraq War’s Bloodiest Battle

Nov 10, 2024 | thewarhorse.org | Thomas Brennan

In November 2004, I was a 19-year-old lance corporal assigned to 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment. We were at al-Asad, an air base in Iraq, when we were told to pack only what we could carry. We strapped our packs to the sides of seven-ton trucks and rode into the darkness in a convoy of military vehicles that stretched to the horizon. When we got to Camp Fallujah, we all knew something big was about to happen. Thousands of Marines from across multiple battalions were crammed onto the base. On Nov.