Stephen Dinan

U.S. to block visas for Chinese officials over treatment of Hong Kong

The Trump administration slapped sanctions on top Chinese Communist Party officials Friday, barring them and possibly some family members from entering the U.S. as punishment for curtailing Hong Kong's autonomy. Published June 26, 2020

New coronavirus scam: Cards claim to exempt people from mask mandates

Sorry folks, the Justice Department is not in the business of issuing coronavirus mask exemption cards. Published June 26, 2020

William Barr: Justice Department will charge those who attempted to pull down Andrew Jackson statue

The Justice Department will be bringing federal charges against those it's able to identify as taking part in an attempt to pull down the statue of Andrew Jackson on federal property near the White House, Attorney General William P. Barr said in an interview posted Thursday. Published June 25, 2020

Border agents rescue migrants caught in snowstorm

The call came in to San Diego's 911 center just before 2 p.m. on a Monday in February. It was sunny and nearly 70 degrees in the city — but off to the east, in the Laguna Mountains, there was snow on the ground, sleet was falling and the windchill was in the teens. Published June 25, 2020

Border rescues ignored by media that hypes ‘haunting’ deaths

Their death pose was captured in a haunting photo: A 2-year-old girl tucked inside her father's arm, both of them washed ashore on the Mexican side of the Rio Grande, drowned after a failed attempt to jump the border. Published June 25, 2020

Supreme Court OKs speedy deportations for newly arrived illegal immigrants

The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld the legality of speedy deportations for immigrants who are in the country illegally, ruling that constitutional rights such as access to the court system don't automatically kick in just because someone touches U.S. soil. Published June 25, 2020

Feds sent coronavirus stimulus checks to 1.1 million dead people

The federal government sent coronavirus stimulus checks to more than 1 million dead people, totaling $1.4 billion in bogus payments, according to a new audit Thursday. Published June 25, 2020

William Barr says antitrust decision on tech giants coming this summer

Attorney General William P. Barr says to expect a decision on pursuing antitrust action against big tech giants this summer -- and he sounds determined to go after the likes of Google for "censoring" Americans' political debate. Published June 25, 2020

ICE testing reveals 1% positive coronavirus rate in Colorado detention facility

ICE on Wednesday announced the results of coronavirus testing at a Colorado detention facility, saying 1% of the migrants who submitted to a test came back positive. Published June 24, 2020

Donald Trump says border wall ‘has helped’ cut illegal immigration

President Trump said Tuesday morning that the border wall has helped cut the flow of illegal immigration to "just about a record-breaking low," as he prepared to jet off to Yuma, Arizona, to mark more than 200 miles of construction since the start of his administration. Published June 23, 2020

Donald Trump to cut 525,000 foreign guest-workers to speed coronavirus jobs recovery

President Trump unleashed American workers to begin the coronavirus recovery Monday, announcing a series of immigration moves that will block hundreds of thousands of new foreign workers the rest of this year and push businesses to offer better pay to those that do come in the future. Published June 22, 2020

Chad Wolf, acting DHS chief: DACA is still illegal

The chief of Homeland Security said Sunday that the Obama-era DACA deportation amnesty program for "Dreamers" is still illegal, and the department will try again to cancel it, after the Supreme Court last week shot down a previous attempt to do so. Published June 21, 2020

Fairfax County orders police to stop helping ICE on immigration cases

Immigrant-rights activists took a victory lap Friday over Fairfax County's new sanctuary policy limiting police cooperation with federal immigration agents, saying it could protect thousands of illegal immigrants from being deported. Published June 19, 2020

Donald Trump says he’ll try again on DACA revocation

President Trump signaled Friday that he will once again move to cancel the Obama-era DACA deportation amnesty, though this time he said he'll check all the proper procedural boxes. Published June 19, 2020

U.S. stops issuing visas to Burundi over deportation feud

The Trump administration announced Friday it has stopped issuing most types of visas to Burundi citizens, slapping the central African nation with some of the stiffest penalties ever for refusing to cooperate in taking back its deportees. Published June 19, 2020

DHS to take more time processing asylum work permits

Homeland Security's citizenship agency finalized a new rule Friday that will give officers more time to review work permit applications for those seeking asylum. Published June 19, 2020

LULAC volunteer arrested for voter fraud; woman voted twice in Texas primary

Texas authorities have charged a former volunteer for LULAC, a major Hispanic civil and voting rights organization, with voter fraud after she cast two ballots in the state's March 3 primaries. Published June 19, 2020

‘Dreamers’ symbol of broken immigration system

The hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrant "Dreamers" protected by Thursday's Supreme Court ruling are living the full range of the American experience. Published June 18, 2020

Supreme Court leaves DACA in place; justices say Trump cut corners to end program

The Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the Trump administration cut too many corners when it moved to revoke the Obama-era DACA program, leaving in place protections for hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrant "Dreamers." Published June 18, 2020

Prince William Country ends 287(g) program involvement

Prince William County's Jail Board failed Wednesday to renew its cooperation agreement with ICE, meaning its involvement in the 287(g) program that allows deputies at the jail to begin the deportation process will expire at the end of this month. Published June 17, 2020