Thomas E. Ricks

Thomas E. Ricks covered the U.S. military from 1991 to 2008 for the Wall Street Journal and then the Washington Post. He can be reached at [email protected].
Follow Thomas E. Ricks:
On X
Articles by Thomas E. Ricks
6120175727_5ded42d8f5_o
6120175727_5ded42d8f5_o

Another number for you: 151 million

Best Defense
Thomas E. Ricks
32351721173_56048f84a4_k
32351721173_56048f84a4_k

Mid-career thoughts: After a decade or so, of war, you begin to wonder if it’s worth it

Best Defense
Thomas E. Ricks
101st-Airborne-Soldiers-build-elite-Iraqi-force-with-Ranger-Training-7-480x319
101st-Airborne-Soldiers-build-elite-Iraqi-force-with-Ranger-Training-7-480x319

Inside ‘Blackhearts’ (IV): Problems with task organization also hurt us badly

Best Defense
Thomas E. Ricks
Screen Shot 2017-05-08 at 9.42.18 AM
Screen Shot 2017-05-08 at 9.42.18 AM

Timely Monday book review: Gilles Kepel’s lively study of ‘Terror in France’

Best Defense
Thomas E. Ricks
4218923753_be962d0014_o
4218923753_be962d0014_o

The diaries of Trump’s handler (4): Ok, as instructed I put microphone in cat

Best Defense
Thomas E. Ricks
Police officers stand by after Greenpeace activists unveiled a banner reading "liberty, equality, fraternity" on the Eiffel Tower in Paris early on May 5, 2017, to protest against the far-right Front National (FN) party, two days before the second round of the presidential election. / AFP PHOTO / Jacques DEMARTHON (Photo credit should read JACQUES DEMARTHON/AFP/Getty Images)
Police officers stand by after Greenpeace activists unveiled a banner reading "liberty, equality, fraternity" on the Eiffel Tower in Paris early on May 5, 2017, to protest against the far-right Front National (FN) party, two days before the second round of the presidential election. / AFP PHOTO / Jacques DEMARTHON (Photo credit should read JACQUES DEMARTHON/AFP/Getty Images)

Best Defense’s special report from Paris: Security feels solid but not suffocating

Best Defense
Thomas E. Ricks
Screen Shot 2017-05-05 at 9.50.37 AM
Screen Shot 2017-05-05 at 9.50.37 AM

Inside ‘Blackhearts’ (III): With different units holding very different views of the fight, we stepped off into the abyss

Best Defense
Thomas E. Ricks
Rip_Dicken_Medal_Dog_IWM_D_5945
Rip_Dicken_Medal_Dog_IWM_D_5945

Rip the Air Raid Dog helps find victims following a bombing in eastern London, 1941

Best Defense
Thomas E. Ricks
U.S. Air Force Airmen from the 720th Special Tactics Group out of Hurlburt Field, Fla., jump out of a C-130J Hercules aircraft during water rescue training over the Destin coastline in Florida Oct. 3, 2007. The training is designed to enhance aerial zodiac deployment and personnel recovery. The aircraft belongs to the 41st Airlift Squadron out of Little Rock Air Force Base in Arkansas. DoD photo by Senior Airman Julianne Showalter, U.S. Air Force. (Released)
U.S. Air Force Airmen from the 720th Special Tactics Group out of Hurlburt Field, Fla., jump out of a C-130J Hercules aircraft during water rescue training over the Destin coastline in Florida Oct. 3, 2007. The training is designed to enhance aerial zodiac deployment and personnel recovery. The aircraft belongs to the 41st Airlift Squadron out of Little Rock Air Force Base in Arkansas. DoD photo by Senior Airman Julianne Showalter, U.S. Air Force. (Released)

Jack McCain is right that the Air Force has big problems — but he’s wrong about why officers are bailing out so much

Best Defense
Thomas E. Ricks
Screen Shot 2017-05-04 at 9.57.00 AM
Screen Shot 2017-05-04 at 9.57.00 AM

Book excerpt: Obama’s drone war in Pakistan was bigger than people think

Best Defense
Thomas E. Ricks
2bct
2bct

Inside ‘Blackhearts’ (II): Our lousy command relations frayed badly in Iraq

Best Defense
Thomas E. Ricks
Kent_State_massacre
Kent_State_massacre

May 4, 1970: 4 dead in Ohio

Best Defense
Thomas E. Ricks
1-502
1-502

‘Blackhearts’ (I): A view from the inside

Best Defense
Thomas E. Ricks
DSCF3016
DSCF3016

War? North of the Korean DMZ, it’s all about the Kims, all about the Kims

Best Defense
Thomas E. Ricks
Topographic map of North Korea. (Wikimedia Commons)
Topographic map of North Korea. (Wikimedia Commons)

Why ‘5027’ is a number you should know: How war in Korea might unfold

Best Defense
Thomas E. Ricks
Load more by Thomas E. Ricks Return to staff list

Latest

See All Stories

Trending