Donnelly is a veteran defense reporter for Congressional Quarterly and Roll Call. His scoops have netted numerous awards for exclusive reporting. In 2018, he won both the National Press Foundation Dirksen award for the most outstanding reporting on Congress and the National Press Club's Dornheim award for the best coverage of defense issues.
He specializes in disclosing Pentagon acquisition malpractice, with a particular emphasis on procurements that could risk the lives of troops. His stories have also illuminated the inside maneuvers that go into assembling defense legislation and spending measures.
Donnelly has worked at CQ and Roll Call since 2004. Prior to that, he was a reporter and editor at Defense Week.
Donnelly is president of Military Reporters & Editors. He has held several leadership positions at the National Press Club and has chaired for more than a decade the club's Press Freedom Committee.
He has also served on the U.S. Congress's Standing Committee of Correspondents, which accredits reporters in Washington.
Donnelly's work has appeared in numerous publications and broadcast outlets--including NBC's Meet the Press, CNN, MSNBC, the Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times and National Public Radio's "All Things Considered."
He is a graduate of Gonzaga College High School in DC and the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Va.
