James LaPorta

Staff Writer
James LaPorta is a staff writer and investigative reporter covering national security and the Department of Defense. Prior to joining Newsweek in 2018, his past bylines, work, and commentary have appeared on and in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Daily Beast, CBS News, CNN, MSNBC, among others. Before transitioning to journalism in 2014, Mr. LaPorta served in the U.S. Marine Corps within the infantry and intelligence communities. He is a veteran of the Afghanistan war.
                                    
U.S.
Marine Commandant Angry With Unit that Booked Gala At Trump's Mar-a-LagoBad optics? U.S. Marine Commandant General David H. Berger of the Marine Corps is upset that one of his units in South Florida  planned to hold its annual military ball at President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach.

U.S.
Two Afghanistan Vets, Would-Be Gun Runners, Take Plea on Federal ChargeTwo U.S. Army soldiers turned amateur "merchants of death" were indicted for attempting to sell military weapons and explosives to a smuggler bound for Mexico.

U.S.
Special Forces Soldier Killed a Week After Trump Canceled Taliban TalksThe Taliban said more Americans would die after Trump said he was canceling a secret Camp David meeting aimed at ending America's longest war.

U.S.
On 9/11, A 'Conversation a Father and Son Should Never Have'"I said my goodbyes and told my son he needed to look after his mom and sister-to-be...if I didn't make it back home," said retired NYPD Detective Rob O'Donnell. Ten-minutes later, Seven World Trade Center, a 47-story building in Lower Manhattan, collapsed around him.

U.S.
Pompeo Echoes Obama-Era Line on al-Qaeda and Afghanistan Amid UncertaintySecretary of State Mike Pompeo uses an Obama-era line to describe al-Qaeda and the current situation in Afghanistan. Organizations and officials claim Pompeo is underestimating their capabilities and influence.

News
$450M Intended To Build Schools On Military Bases Diverted To Border WallWhile three schools are located in the United States or a U.S. territory, the others are on military bases overseas.

World
U.S., Romania Soldiers Dead in Afghanistan Suicide Attacks Amid Peace TalksViolence continues to plague Afghanistan, even as the nearly year-long talks between the Trump administration and the Taliban appeared on the cusp of a breakthrough.

U.S.
Pentagon Identifies US Special Forces Soldier Killed in AfghanistanU.S. Army Sergeant First Class Dustin B. Ard, 31, of Idaho Falls, Idaho, died Thursday from wounds he sustained during combat operations in Zabul, a southern Afghan province bordering Kandahar.

U.S.
Special Forces Soldier Killed As Peace Talks Continue to End Afghan WarAn American Speical Forces soldier was killed in Afghanistan Thursday as violence continues throughout the region amid ongoing peace negotiations between U.S. and Taliban officials.

U.S.
Military Drones Remain an Option For U.S.-Mexico Border, Documents ShowThe shortage of personnel and military hardware was created in February when Democratic governors pulled their National Guard troops from the border as a rebuke to President Trump.

U.S.
US Army Commander Suspended After Use Auschwitz Death Camp MottoA U.S. Army recruiting commander in Houston, Texas, has been suspended pending an investigation into a memo sent out to Army recruiters that used a Nazi motto.

World
Two U.S. Special Forces Killed in Afghanistan Ahead of New Peace TalksEven as there was fresh hope for a deal with the Taliban that could end the U.S.' longest war, Americans lost their lives in Afghanistan.

U.S.
U.S. Draws Back Afghanistan Operations Against Taliban As Peace Talks EndNewsweek has learned from senior defense officials that U.S. forces have been ordered to stop targeting the Taliban and advising Afghan allies as thousands of troops were set to withdraw from the country.

U.S.
More Drones Designed For War Are Potentially Coming To The Southern BorderAs the Pentagon confirms the deployment of 1000 U.S. troops and six helicopters to the southwest border next week on August 15, documents obtained by Newsweek show drones and reconnaissance planes could be going with them.

U.S.
Debunking Conspiracy Theories That Say the Dayton Shooting Never HappenedAfter the mass shooting on Sunday in Dayton, Ohio claimed the lives of nine people and injured 27 others, conspiracy theories online targeted a deceased man bearing the same name as the suspected shooter.

U.S.
Pentagon Identifies Two U.S. Army Paratroopers Killed In Insider AttackDefense Department officials identified two U.S. Army paratroopers killed in Afghanistan an apparent insider attack on Monday bringing the Pentagon's death toll in America's longest war to a total of fifteen this year.

U.S.
Why Martha McSally Endorsed a Trump Nominee Accused of Sexual AssaultThe first-term lawmaker told Newsweek that after weeks of studying the evidence, she's determined the accusations levied against the four-star general are false.

U.S.
Concern Among Senators Lingers as Trump Nominee Denies Sexual Assault ClaimSenators heard from both General John E. Hyten and his sexual assault accuser Colonel Kathryn Spletstoser privately last week. But coupled with his public testimony on Tuesday, the Trump nominee has, so far, failed to quell some of the concerns.

U.S.
Two U.S. Service Members Killed in Insider Attack in AfghanistanTwo American service members in Afghanistan were killed Monday afternoon in what a Defense Department source described as an apparent insider attack by a member of Afghanistan's national army.

U.S.
16 U.S. Marines Arrested on Human Smuggling and Drug-Related OffensesSixteen U.S. Marines during a battalion formation on Thursday morning for their alleged role in various illegal activities ranging from human smuggling to drug-related offenses, Marine Corps officials said.

U.S.
U.S. Navy SEAL Team Expelled From Iraq Over Reports Of Drinking And RapeIn a rare move by U.S. military officials,  a Naval Special Warfare platoon has been expelled from Iraq and directed to return to San Diego, California after commanders learned of allegations of unauthorized drinking and sexual assault.

U.S.
Ex-DoD Spokeswoman Habitually Abused Pentagon Ethical RegulationsThe Pentagon's watchdog on Thursday said Dana W. White, a political appointee from the Trump administration and the Defense Department's former chief spokeswoman, violated ethical regulations by directing and allowing subordinates to run personal errands for her.

Opinion
Do We Even Remember the Afghan War?They say Afghanistan is America's new Vietnam. But at least Americans thought and talked about Vietnam.

U.S.
Naval Appeals Court Overturns Marine Colonel's Child Sex Abuse ConvictionThe child sex abuse conviction of a high-ranking U.S. Marine officer was overturned by an appeals court, sparking outrage from advocacy groups calling for Congressional reform of the military justice system.

U.S.
A Second Military Contractor Killed In Afghanistan Marks A Lethal WeekChristian McCoy, a retired Green Beret working for CACI International, was killed Monday.

World
Pentagon Identifies Two Soldiers Killed In Savage Gun FightThe soldiers died after facing a savage fusillade of gunfire from Taliban militants positioned 10-yards away.

U.S.
First Living Iraq War Medal of Honor Recipient Battled Through FallujaFor former U.S. Army Staff Sergeant David G. Bellavia, the memories of Falluja can seem as if they occurred fifty years ago or just yesterday.

World
Donald Trump Was Ready to Strike Iran Missile System, Then Changed His MindPresident Donald Trump had ordered a series of strikes against Iran in response to the downing of a state-of-the-art drone, but the military operation was called off while in its early stages on Thursday.

Politics
How Conflict Has Shaped Trump's New Acting Defense SecretaryPresident Trump's new acting defense secretary garners bi-partisan support as Patrick Shanahan departs the Pentagon amid allegations of domestic violence.

U.S.
Exclusive: Single Migrant Adults in CBP Detention Growing by 1,000 Per WeekDocuments obtained by Newsweek show the number of single, adult migrants in U.S. custody has grown every week by 1,000 along the U.S.-Mexico border.
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