Stephen Dinan
Articles by Stephen Dinan
ICE paid millions to leave detention beds empty: inspector general
Homeland Security's migrant detention agency paid more than $8 million for detention beds that went unused in a Louisiana facility, the department's inspector general said in a new report that also blasted the jail for filthy conditions and overly strict rules. Published March 4, 2023
MS-13’s smuggling operations in Mexico help gang members reach U.S.: DOJ
MS-13 has expanded its operations into Mexico, running migrant smuggling routes in order to make money and be able to send reinforcements into the U.S. to replace gang members who get arrested or deported, according to federal prosecutors. Published March 2, 2023
Biden gets tough on pandemic fraud; promises more money, time to prosecute scammers
President Biden is proposing more money to go after pandemic fraudsters, and calling on Congress to pass legislation giving investigators and prosecutors more time to bring criminal cases and new powers to recover money from those they can't prosecute. Published March 2, 2023
Sen. Tom Cotton challenges U.S. asylum policy, says New Orleans more dangerous than Honduras
Sen. Tom Cotton challenged the Biden administration's more lenient asylum policies Wednesday, saying the U.S. is now allowing people to claim protection if they come from countries that are, on the whole, safer than some major American cities. Published March 1, 2023
Scammer filed unemployment claim in name of feds’ top investigator
The government's top investigator was testifying to Congress when he made a startling revelation: Someone had used his identity to apply for pandemic unemployment benefits. Published March 1, 2023
Border Patrol agent accidentally shot smuggling suspect, federal officials say
A Border Patrol agent was trying to arrest a migrant smuggling suspect when his gun fired, striking the man in the arm. Published March 1, 2023
Equal Rights Amendment stumbles in court and on Capitol Hill
The Equal Rights Amendment suffered twin setbacks this week after a federal appeals court shot down an effort to force it into the Constitution, and the nominee to lead the National Archives reaffirmed she won't act on her own to add it to the government's founding document. Published March 1, 2023
Supreme Court signals skepticism of Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan
Supreme Court justices expressed skepticism Tuesday over President Biden's student loan forgiveness plan, with the court's GOP-appointed members raising questions of fairness and wondering why Congress wasn't consulted on a $400 billion program. Published February 28, 2023
Supreme Court rules in MoneyGram case; first majority opinion by Justice Jackson
The Supreme Court ruled Tuesday in favor of states that say financial instruments that are abandoned should go to the states where they were purchased, not to where the company that sold them is located. Published February 28, 2023
House GOP probing illegal immigrant teen who committed MS-13 murder
House Republicans opened a probe Tuesday into a case where authorities say an MS-13 gang member -- who reportedly came to the U.S. as a child -- murdered a woman. Published February 28, 2023
Rep. Matt Gaetz: GOP doesn’t have the votes to impeach Mayorkas
Republicans don't have the votes to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, according to Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida, a key lawmaker pushing the effort. Published February 27, 2023
Taliban comb Kabul records to hunt down U.S. war allies
Operatives of the new Taliban government in Kabul are still trying to identify and retaliate against Afghans who cooperated with the 20-year American military and reconstruction effort, a U.S. government report said. Published February 27, 2023
Supreme Court to hear challenge to Elizabeth Warren’s Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
The Supreme Court announced Monday it would hear a challenge to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in a case that could determine whether Democrats violated the Constitution in creating a "Wall Street cop" after the 2008 financial collapse. Published February 27, 2023
The tragedy of Jesse Dean: Detainee died in ICE custody while waiting to go home
The Department of Homeland Security's medical personnel bungled the care for a Bahamian man in custody, mistreating a gastrointestinal problem that eventually cost him his life, an inspector general has concluded. Published February 26, 2023
Illegal immigrants taking beds from local residents in Arizona hospital
The main hospital in Yuma, Arizona, put a price tag on the border crisis, with its officials telling lawmakers Thursday that it spent $26 million last year on uncompensated care for the wave of illegal immigrants who threaten to swamp the facility. Published February 23, 2023
Supreme Court’s pro-gun ruling could mean 150 more firearms deaths a year, Rand Corp. says
The Rand Corp. has put a death toll on last year's gun rights Supreme Court ruling, calculating that more permissive concealed-carry permit laws would lead to at least 150 additional firearms deaths each year. Published February 23, 2023
Supreme Court struggles to draw line on how Big Tech aids terrorists who use platforms
Supreme Court justices searched Wednesday for a way to determine when large social media companies used by terrorists cross the line into aiding and abetting them in their attacks. Published February 22, 2023
Supreme Court backs Arizona convict in death sentence case
The Supreme Court said a death row convict in Arizona should get a new chance to argue against his sentence, ruling Wednesday that the state's high court should have given him a chance to tell jurors his alternative was life in prison without parole. Published February 22, 2023
DHS revives Trump-style asylum limits to stop new border surge
The Biden administration proposed new rules Tuesday to block illegal immigrants from jumping the border to file bogus asylum claims, embracing a Trump-style policy that President Biden had once labeled a "humanitarian disaster." Published February 21, 2023
Supreme Court skeptical of upending Big Tech legal protection for hosting controversial content
The Supreme Court cast a skeptical eye Tuesday on a challenge to big social media companies, with justices expressing concern that stripping them of legal protection for how they promote content on their websites could upend the entire internet economy. Published February 21, 2023
