Stephen Dinan

Mark Brnovich, Arizona AG, invites Kamala Harris to go on border tour

Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich has invited Vice President Kamala Harris to take a tour of the border this month, saying she needs to get a first-hand look at the situation she's been put in charge of solving. Published April 5, 2021

DHS may restart border wall construction to plug ‘gaps’

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas told department employees he may restart border wall construction to plug what he called "gaps" in the current barrier. Published April 5, 2021

Border Patrol arrests two terrorist suspects in California amid migrant surge

The Border Patrol announced Monday that agents arrested two Yemeni men who were on the FBI's terrorist watch list over the past two months, confirming Republican lawmakers' reports that terrorism suspects were attempting to sneak into the country as part of the migrant surge. Published April 5, 2021

Ken Cuccinelli rips removal of Trump asylum screening policy by Biden administration

Homeland Security has issued new rules requiring every affirmative-asylum decision to undergo a supervisor's review, in a move the department described as "quality assurance" but which one former staffer said was an attempt to browbeat officers into approving more cases. Published April 4, 2021

‘Catch-and-bus’ spreads Biden border-surge migrants across U.S.

The migrants from the Biden border surge are being nabbed along the Rio Grande, the Arizona deserts and the remoteness of New Mexico and southern California. But they're not staying there. Published April 1, 2021

Churches reopening doors for Easter

Easter sunrise will find America's churches far more open than they were a year ago as COVID-19 -- and local officials -- shut doors and sent pastors and priests to the internet to minister to their flocks. Published April 1, 2021

New DHS plea for ‘virtual’ volunteers to help manage border surge

Homeland Security issued a striking new plea for volunteers to help at the border, telling employees in a new email that they won't even have to be on-site but can instead do a "virtual deployment." Published April 1, 2021

Alejandro Mayorka praises Border Patrol for saving children’s lives

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas praised "heroic" Border Patrol agents Wednesday for saving lives of migrants surging into the U.S., and warned families against sending or bringing their children on the journey north. Published March 31, 2021

Rita Hart drops attempt to overturn Iowa congressional election

Rita Hart, a Democratic congressional candidate, said Wednesday that she is dropping her effort to overturn the results of her election loss in Iowa, saying the effort to contest the race had become too "toxic." Published March 31, 2021

Jose Cruz Noguez charged in smuggling that led to 13 migrants’ deaths

Federal prosecutors charged a Mexican man Tuesday with alien smuggling stemming from a March 2 incident that saw 13 migrants die in a horrific car crash. Published March 30, 2021

Kamala Harris speaks with Guatemala President Alejandro Giammettei on border surge

Vice President Kamala Harris spoke Tuesday with Guatemala's president as she dived into her new role as point person for trying to solve the conditions that push migrants to flee Central America. Published March 30, 2021

Team Biden tuned out Trump’s warnings, modeling on migrant surge

The Trump administration warned President Biden's transition team last year to expect a migrant surge if it followed through on his immigration campaign promises, and even presented modeling to show how bad it might get, a senior official told The Washington Times. Published March 30, 2021

House upholds $5,000 fine on Texas congressman who ducked metal detector

The House ethics committee said Tuesday it has upheld a $5,000 fine imposed on Rep. Louie Gohmert for failing to go through metal detectors when he entered the floor of the House chamber last month. Published March 30, 2021

Texas asks Supreme Court to revive Trump’s immigrant self-sufficiency policy

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton led a coalition of states Tuesday in asking the Supreme Court to revive a Trump administration policy that would penalize legal immigrants who end up using welfare programs. Published March 30, 2021

Former Border Patrol chief predicts 1.4 million illegal immigrants this year

The Border Patrol is on track to nab 1.4 million illegal immigrants attempting to jump the border this year, according to the man who ran the Border Patrol in the Obama years then ran Customs and Border Protection during the Trump era. Published March 30, 2021

Andy Biggs, Arizona Republican, asks DHS to stop releasing migrants in Arizona

An Arizona Congressman told Homeland Security on Monday to stop releasing illegal immigrants into his state, saying he's been unable to get straight answers about what's going on. Published March 29, 2021

DHS begs for border volunteers, offers COVID-19 vaccines in exchange

Homeland Security issued a new plea Monday for volunteers to head to the border to help handle the surge of migrants, and said those who do want to go can jump the line to get COVID-19 vaccines. Published March 29, 2021

Border agents pulled off patrol sparks spike in ‘gotaways’

Most of the attention at the border is on the capture of children and families, but an even bigger problem could be the people who are getting away right now. Published March 28, 2021

DHS to ‘fortify’ DACA; attempt to put program on firmer footing

Homeland Security will soon move to "fortify" the DACA program, Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said Friday night, moving to reassure hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrant "Dreamers" that the program will continue to give them a place in society. Published March 26, 2021

Border Patrol told to watch for migrants looking to kill cops

The Border Patrol in Arizona was put on alert this week over intelligence that two Mexican migrants planned to jump the border to try to kill a cop, The Washington Times has learned. Published March 26, 2021