John Ismay
@johnismay.bsky.social
Reporter, The New York Times. Former U.S. Navy EOD & Iraq vet. Reach me securely via Signal at: johnismay.01 or by email at: john.ismay@nytimes.com
Reposted by John Ismay
Top U.S. Catholic clerics said that the U.S.'s “moral role in confronting evil around the world” is in question for the first time in decades. nyti.ms/4bDP7iK
Prominent Catholic Clerics Denounce U.S. Foreign Policy
Citing recent events in Venezuela, Ukraine and Greenland, three cardinals said their statement was inspired by Pope Leo.
nyti.ms
January 19, 2026 at 4:15 PM
Top U.S. Catholic clerics said that the U.S.'s “moral role in confronting evil around the world” is in question for the first time in decades. nyti.ms/4bDP7iK
Reposted by John Ismay
I love the people who get on social media and respond to a post with “You shouldn’t have said ABC, instead you should have said XYZ.” Like, no my dude. My account is where I write what I want to write, your account is where you write what you want to write.
January 18, 2026 at 11:14 PM
I love the people who get on social media and respond to a post with “You shouldn’t have said ABC, instead you should have said XYZ.” Like, no my dude. My account is where I write what I want to write, your account is where you write what you want to write.
Reposted by John Ismay
Now the actual military has to dress like it’s not the military cuz federal law enforcement agencies dress too much like the military
January 17, 2026 at 11:01 PM
Now the actual military has to dress like it’s not the military cuz federal law enforcement agencies dress too much like the military
The Coast Guard has always done far more vessel boardings at sea than the Navy, but the post-9/11 creation of the MSRTs gave the service the ability to use insertion tactics primarily used by special operation forces to take down ships more safely and quickly www.nytimes.com/2026/01/16/u...
U.S. Boardings of Oil Tankers Reflect Hard Lessons Learned at Sea
www.nytimes.com
January 17, 2026 at 1:55 PM
The Coast Guard has always done far more vessel boardings at sea than the Navy, but the post-9/11 creation of the MSRTs gave the service the ability to use insertion tactics primarily used by special operation forces to take down ships more safely and quickly www.nytimes.com/2026/01/16/u...
Reposted by John Ismay
🚨🚨You can now schedule an appointment to browse at our Rare Book Department in Hyattsville!🚨🚨
book.squareup.com/appointments...
book.squareup.com/appointments...
December 11, 2025 at 7:42 PM
🚨🚨You can now schedule an appointment to browse at our Rare Book Department in Hyattsville!🚨🚨
book.squareup.com/appointments...
book.squareup.com/appointments...
EOD job security x ♾️
KTOWN NOW | A 1,000-pound World War II-era U.S. aircraft bomb discovered Thursday afternoon in Kaiserslautern’s Stadtwald area was successfully defused late that night.
WWII bomb found and defused in Kaiserslautern’s Stadtwald
The 1,000-pound American bomb was uncovered during excavation work Thursday afternoon.
www.stripes.com
January 16, 2026 at 5:30 PM
EOD job security x ♾️
Reposted by John Ismay
Last week, DOD announced the nomination of Air Force JAG Col. Christine Piper for brigadier general. Now that announcement has been pulled from the DOD website.
January 15, 2026 at 7:31 PM
Last week, DOD announced the nomination of Air Force JAG Col. Christine Piper for brigadier general. Now that announcement has been pulled from the DOD website.
Reposted by John Ismay
In case you missed… Pentagon prosecutors have put forth their latest proposed trial start date for four prisoners at Guantánamo Bay who are acccused of plotting or conspiring in the 9/11 attacks: Jan. 11, 2027.
Judge Rejects Effort to Return Man Accused in 9/11 Plot to Guantánamo Trial
www.nytimes.com
January 15, 2026 at 1:47 PM
In case you missed… Pentagon prosecutors have put forth their latest proposed trial start date for four prisoners at Guantánamo Bay who are acccused of plotting or conspiring in the 9/11 attacks: Jan. 11, 2027.
Reposted by John Ismay
REPORT: The Coast Guard is years behind on its annual reporting requirements to Congress regarding sexual misconduct in the ranks and could do more to improve the effectiveness of reforms implemented in the wake of an exposed cover-up, according to two reports released by a government watchdog.
Coast Guard late on last 3 years of sexual assault reports to Congress, pledges to catch up
The Government Accountability Office conducted the reviews after revelations in 2023 that the service had been mishandling sexual misconduct reports.
www.stripes.com
January 15, 2026 at 6:11 PM
REPORT: The Coast Guard is years behind on its annual reporting requirements to Congress regarding sexual misconduct in the ranks and could do more to improve the effectiveness of reforms implemented in the wake of an exposed cover-up, according to two reports released by a government watchdog.
Reposted by John Ismay
“Some of the messages I’ve been hearing from Iran is a sense of betrayal by President Trump... They thought they were going out there with him behind their backs.”
My latest for @rollingstone.com on America's lack of good options in Iran. www.rollingstone.com/politics/pol...
My latest for @rollingstone.com on America's lack of good options in Iran. www.rollingstone.com/politics/pol...
January 15, 2026 at 4:36 PM
“Some of the messages I’ve been hearing from Iran is a sense of betrayal by President Trump... They thought they were going out there with him behind their backs.”
My latest for @rollingstone.com on America's lack of good options in Iran. www.rollingstone.com/politics/pol...
My latest for @rollingstone.com on America's lack of good options in Iran. www.rollingstone.com/politics/pol...
Reposted by John Ismay
BREAKING | The Pentagon has suggested it would take over editorial content decision making for Stars and Stripes in a statement from the Defense Department’s top spokesman.
Pentagon says it will ‘refocus’ Stars and Stripes content
The Pentagon suggested it would take over editorial decision making for Stars and Stripes, which has long retained independence under a congressional mandate.
www.stripes.com
January 15, 2026 at 5:12 PM
BREAKING | The Pentagon has suggested it would take over editorial content decision making for Stars and Stripes in a statement from the Defense Department’s top spokesman.
Reposted by John Ismay
Denmark announced on Wednesday that it is increasing “military presence in and around Greenland in the coming period, involving aircraft, ships, and soldiers.” President Trump has repeatedly criticized the Danes for not doing enough to protect Greenland.
Denmark Reinforces Its Military Presence in Greenland
The Danes say the deployment of aircraft, ships and soldiers is part of an ongoing effort to better protect the island and the Arctic.
nyti.ms
January 14, 2026 at 5:40 PM
Denmark announced on Wednesday that it is increasing “military presence in and around Greenland in the coming period, involving aircraft, ships, and soldiers.” President Trump has repeatedly criticized the Danes for not doing enough to protect Greenland.
Reposted by John Ismay
BREAKING: Hundreds of sensitive U.S. records obtained by WIRED undercut the Trump administration’s claims portraying Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua as a unified terrorist force invading the country. Intelligence agencies spent much of 2025 unsure TdA even functioned as an organization on U.S. soil.
Trump Warned of a Tren de Aragua ‘Invasion.’ US Intel Told a Different Story
Hundreds of records obtained by WIRED show thin intelligence on the Venezuelan gang in the United States, describing fragmented, low-level crime rather than a coordinated terrorist threat.
www.wired.com
January 14, 2026 at 4:02 PM
BREAKING: Hundreds of sensitive U.S. records obtained by WIRED undercut the Trump administration’s claims portraying Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua as a unified terrorist force invading the country. Intelligence agencies spent much of 2025 unsure TdA even functioned as an organization on U.S. soil.
Reposted by John Ismay
This is a powerful and frightening story about an agency that has become unaccountable for its abuses: www.propublica.org/article/vide...
We Found More Than 40 Cases of Immigration Agents Using Banned Chokeholds and Other Moves That Can Cut Off Breathing
Civilians have had apparent seizures. One had his eyes roll back. Another had ribs broken. “I felt like I was going to pass out and die,” said a 16-year-old citizen put in a chokehold. The government ...
www.propublica.org
January 14, 2026 at 2:51 PM
This is a powerful and frightening story about an agency that has become unaccountable for its abuses: www.propublica.org/article/vide...
Reposted by John Ismay
".. The reporter, Hannah Natanson, has spent the past year covering the Trump administration’s effort to fire federal workers and redirect much of the work force to enforcing his agenda."
@nytimes.com
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/14/u...
@nytimes.com
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/14/u...
F.B.I. Searches Home of Washington Post Journalist for Classified Documents
www.nytimes.com
January 14, 2026 at 2:15 PM
".. The reporter, Hannah Natanson, has spent the past year covering the Trump administration’s effort to fire federal workers and redirect much of the work force to enforcing his agenda."
@nytimes.com
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/14/u...
@nytimes.com
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/14/u...
Reposted by John Ismay
Hard to take any legal opinion seriously that keeps referring to the "War Department."
January 14, 2026 at 3:12 AM
Hard to take any legal opinion seriously that keeps referring to the "War Department."
Reposted by John Ismay
Wonder what the couple hundred personnel of the strike force—the Delta squadron, Rangers, and 160th pilots—think of the assertion that even if they had all been shot down and killed, “the operation falls short of war in the constitutional sense.”
January 14, 2026 at 1:07 AM
Wonder what the couple hundred personnel of the strike force—the Delta squadron, Rangers, and 160th pilots—think of the assertion that even if they had all been shot down and killed, “the operation falls short of war in the constitutional sense.”
Reposted by John Ismay
“It is unlikely that even the full loss of the strike force would amount to the type of sustained casualties that would amount to a constitutional war” that lawmakers must approve, wrote the head of the department’s Office of Legal Counsel, T. Elliot Gaiser.
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/13/u...
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/13/u...
Justice Dept. Memo Said Trump Could Send Troops Into Venezuela on His Own
www.nytimes.com
January 14, 2026 at 12:18 AM
“It is unlikely that even the full loss of the strike force would amount to the type of sustained casualties that would amount to a constitutional war” that lawmakers must approve, wrote the head of the department’s Office of Legal Counsel, T. Elliot Gaiser.
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/13/u...
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/13/u...
Reposted by John Ismay
Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen of Greenland said on Tuesday that his country would rather remain a part of the Danish Kingdom than join the U.S., a day before officials from the three governments are set to meet at the White House.
Before White House Meeting, Greenland’s Leader Says Island Would Choose Denmark Over U.S.
Greenland’s leader said that, if given the choice between the United States and Denmark, the Greenlanders would rather stick with the Danes.
nyti.ms
January 13, 2026 at 11:30 PM
Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen of Greenland said on Tuesday that his country would rather remain a part of the Danish Kingdom than join the U.S., a day before officials from the three governments are set to meet at the White House.
During the post-9/11 wars the Air Force modified a number of civilian turboprop aircraft to carry the Common Launch Tube weapons dispenser, including variants of the Pilatus PC-12, the Cessna Caravan, and the DHC-8. www.nytimes.com/2026/01/12/u...
U.S. Attacked Boat With Aircraft That Looked Like a Civilian Plane
www.nytimes.com
January 13, 2026 at 3:51 PM
During the post-9/11 wars the Air Force modified a number of civilian turboprop aircraft to carry the Common Launch Tube weapons dispenser, including variants of the Pilatus PC-12, the Cessna Caravan, and the DHC-8. www.nytimes.com/2026/01/12/u...
Reposted by John Ismay
"any of our logistics aircraft might actually be a strike aircraft" seems like the sort of thing host countries might like to know
January 13, 2026 at 2:19 AM
"any of our logistics aircraft might actually be a strike aircraft" seems like the sort of thing host countries might like to know
Reposted by John Ismay
But whatever it was is almost certainly CLT/derringer door equipped
January 13, 2026 at 1:52 AM
But whatever it was is almost certainly CLT/derringer door equipped
Reposted by John Ismay
The thing about this that is fundamentally weird is there is an ironclad rule in DoD about lethal force under T10 authorities: it has to be uniformed military personnel doing the shooting, and if it's a platform releasing weapons, it has to be marked
This would be a war crime. Gift link.
U.S. Attacked Boat With Aircraft That Looked Like a Civilian Plane
www.nytimes.com
January 13, 2026 at 1:52 AM
The thing about this that is fundamentally weird is there is an ironclad rule in DoD about lethal force under T10 authorities: it has to be uniformed military personnel doing the shooting, and if it's a platform releasing weapons, it has to be marked
Reposted by John Ismay
U.S. Attacked Boat With Aircraft That Looked Like a Civilian Plane
Even accepting the Trump administration’s claim that there is an armed conflict with suspected drug runners, the laws of war bar “perfidy.”
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/12/u...
Even accepting the Trump administration’s claim that there is an armed conflict with suspected drug runners, the laws of war bar “perfidy.”
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/12/u...
U.S. Attacked Boat With Aircraft That Looked Like a Civilian Plane
www.nytimes.com
January 12, 2026 at 11:45 PM
U.S. Attacked Boat With Aircraft That Looked Like a Civilian Plane
Even accepting the Trump administration’s claim that there is an armed conflict with suspected drug runners, the laws of war bar “perfidy.”
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/12/u...
Even accepting the Trump administration’s claim that there is an armed conflict with suspected drug runners, the laws of war bar “perfidy.”
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/12/u...