A day after the Signal chat story was published, U.S. Africa Command conducted multiple airstrikes against ISIS affiliates. I FOIAed for info similar to the Yemen info that officials said was unclassified. I was told it would harm national security. www.cbsnews.com/news/hegseth...

U.S. Central Command has opened a new combined air defense post with Bahraini forces, highlighting its relationship with a longtime ally and shoring up regional security amid ongoing tensions between Iran and Israel.

New from CBS News - Army Secretary Driscoll meeting with Russians in UAE as Trump administration presses for Ukraine peace deal www.cbsnews.com/news/army-se...

U.S. considers dropping leaflets in Venezuela as it ramps up pressure on Maduro, sources say www.cbsnews.com/news/u-s-con...

Army Sgt. Michael Verardo is being laid to rest today at @ArlingtonNatl - he experienced two separate IED attacks in Afghanistan. Despite amputations, burns, and 120 surgeries, he survived. Verardo died on Aug. 26, 2025. He’s survived by his wife and their three young daughters.

I know this is random but I’m watching an old interview with former Defense Secretary James Mattis and they show a photo of him when he was younger. Why do I only see Tim Robinson?

New at @cbsnews.com.web.brid.gy - Top officials present President Trump with military options for Venezuela in the coming days via Jennifer Jacobs and I. x.com/jimlaporta/s...

Its been fixed. bsky.app/profile/jiml...

Because X essentially doesn’t have a help center, I’m locked out of my X account. I’m annoyed.

Happy 250th birthday to the U.S. Marine Corps. 🎂🖍️

Just outside the Marine Corps ball I’m attending this evening—the birthplace of the Eighth Air Force.

New strike in East Pacific

Breaking news: Far-right activist Laura Loomer is now credentialed to cover the Defense Department, according to a person familiar with the matter, joining a new cohort of right-wing media that have agreed to the Pentagon’s new press policy.

One more week…..

My Halloween costume has not changed in years.

Exclusive at @cbsnews.com.web.brid.gy - US plans "show of force" against Chinese aggression in South China Sea as Trump, Xi to meet, sources say. If the order by Indo-Pacific Command goes forward, it would be directed towards the Scarborough Shoal, the disputed atoll. www.cbsnews.com/news/u-s-sho...

We will not sign

"The guarding of military and diplomatic secrets at the expense of informed representative government provides no real security for our Republic." — Supreme Court Justice Hugo Black in NYT Co. v. US. "The press was protected so that it could bare the secrets of government..."

New at CBS News - DNI Tulsi Gabbard issued a memo ordering agencies to conduct a review of whether random polygraph exams are feasible. The directive emphasizes the need for questions about whether members leak to the press—a callback to the Bush and Obama era. www.cbsnews.com/news/dni-tul...

Today, I watched my friend, Marine Sgt. Matthew Moores (ret.), receive his Purple Heart for wounds received in action on September 8, 2013 in Afghanistan. Afterwards, he laid a wreath on Gen. George Washington’s tomb. His citation is signed by Marine Commandant Gen. Eric Smith.

The road spits us out in fragments. Half-burnt cigarettes & gasoline dreams. We part like thieves at dawn, knowing the madness waits at the next stop. No goodbye is final, only postponed. Until next time….-30-

New at CBS News: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu directly approved military operations on two vessels early last month that were part of a Gaza-bound flotilla carrying aid and pro-Palestinian supporters including Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg. www.cbsnews.com/news/netanya...

“War-ravaged Portland” sounds like the name of a new underground Indie band. But also, when I hear the term “war-ravaged” I tend to think of Aleppo during the Syrian civil war or Mariupol in the war in Ukraine. Does the White House truly believe Portland is equivalent to those locations?

You can reach me on Signal at jimlaportacbs.31

Legal threats hang over NJ governor's race after CBS News report on Mikie Sherrill's military records www.cbsnews.com/news/legal-t...

A day after my son's 10th birthday, today we had to say goodbye to Ellie (AKA Eleanor, Eleanor Roosevelt, Ellie Furtado) We first met in 2011 when I was still in the Marines—she a pup. She was a comfort for me when my dad died 2 hours after my son was born. She was his first dog

A government report released Friday on sexual abuse in high school Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps programs estimated that dozens, and potentially hundreds, of instructors have been accused of sexually abusing or harassing students in the past five years.

I wonder when that Defense Department Inspector General report on Signalgate is going to drop?

People can come to their own conclusions and the comment section isn’t evidence. At the moment, we don’t have information that the release was intentional (that could change with new information) but at the moment, we don’t have it. bsky.app/profile/kare...

This is true. We don’t have any evidence at the moment that suggests this was intentional or politically motivated on the part of the NARA technician. NARA told us that the FOIA request was proper and they do not believe at the moment there was an attempt to deceive. bsky.app/profile/anth...

The National Archives released a mostly unredacted version of Rep. Mikie Sherrill's military records to an ally of Jack Ciattarelli, her GOP opponent in the NJ governor's race. The disclosure potentially violates several U.S. privacy laws. www.cbsnews.com/news/nationa...

New from me: The National Archives released Rep. Mikie Sherrill’s unredacted military record to ally of Jack Ciattarelli, her GOP opponent in the NJ governor’s race. Also, Sherrill was punished for not turning in her classmates in 1994 Naval Academy cheating scandal. www.cbsnews.com/news/nationa...

#BREAKING from CBS News - The National Archives released Rep. Mikie Sherrill’s military record to ally of Jack Ciattarelli, her GOP opponent in the NJ governor’s race. Also, Sherrill was punished for not turning in her classmates in 1994 Naval Academy cheating scandal www.cbsnews.com/news/nationa...

A Pentagon spokesman said it was common sense that “information must be approved for public release by an appropriate authorizing official before it is released, even if it is unclassified.” Maybe in Russia or China, but not in America. www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/202...

From the story Ellee Watson and I wrote yesterday. We found an interesting case involving a service member and Article 134. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces found that a soldier expressing white supremacist views did not violate Art. 134. www.cbsnews.com/news/pentago...

It’s unclear how Pres. Trump could designate a group inside the U.S. as a domestic terrorist group. The U.S. does not have a federal crime of domestic terrorism. Additionally, it’s been understood that the Govt. would run into 1st and 4th Amendment issues. www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-a...

Pentagon reviewing service members' social media posts on Charlie Kirk www.cbsnews.com/news/pentago...

Goodnight

I deleted these two posts related to the lockdown at Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota. There is no active shooter and the base is no longer in lockdown. Purpose of deletion: to stop spread of initial post which did not include the updates. bsky.app/profile/jiml...

Update to the lockdown at Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota. CBS News obtained the “ALL CLEAR” message that went out moments ago. It also says Security Forces have an ongoing investigation but the base is no longer in lockdown and there is NO active shooter. bsky.app/profile/jiml...

When George Wallace was shot in 1972, Ronald Reagan reacted in part by saying: “if something is to be done about this kind of tragedy for anyone, isn’t it necessary that all of us review our own attitude and say yes it is possible for men and women of good will to differ.”

Conservative activist and Turning Point USA co-founder Charlie Kirk died Wednesday after he was shot at an event at Utah Valley University, President Trump confirmed. He was 31 years old. t.co/MQhuRf4Lm9

President Trump announced on Truth Social that Charlie Kirk is dead. Independently, five sources have confirmed to my colleagues here at CBS News that Kirk has died. He was 31.

I’m incredibly sad about the news of Charlie Kirk - I pray he recovers from this disgusting violence.

Today is World Suicide Prevention Day. I unfortunately have had 9 friends and colleagues take their own life. These photos are just a few of them. If you or someone you know needs help, call or text 988 the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline to get 24/7, confidential crisis support.

Army removes head of elite burn treatment center after Christian activist called her pro-trans www.expressnews.com/news/article...

Poland says its airspace was violated by unidentified "drone-type objects" during Russian strikes on Ukraine www.cbsnews.com/live-updates...

I wrote this 4 years ago following the Afghanistan withdrawal of U.S. forces. This is a story about a curious boy with no name — at least, no name that I ever came to know. apnews.com/article/sept...

Have a good one -30-