Stephen Dinan
Articles by Stephen Dinan
Van Hollen accuses El Salvador of ‘set-up’ in meeting with Abrego Garcia
Sen. Chris Van Hollen said the Salvadoran government fabricated the situation that led to a photo of him and deported MS-13 gang suspect Kilmar Abrego Garcia sitting at a table with margarita glasses in front of them. Published April 18, 2025
Rep. Comer tells Democrats that taxpayers won’t pay for visits to Abrego Garcia in El Salvador
A House committee chair told Democrats if they want to make the pilgrimage to El Salvador to visit MS-13 gang suspect Kilmar Abrego Garcia, they'll have to foot the bill on their own. Published April 18, 2025
White House, DHS offer new justifications for deporting Abrego Garcia, MS-13 gang suspect
Trump officials are sharing new reasons for deporting MS-13 suspect Kilmar Abrego Garcia to El Salvador, saying his initial claims blocking his deportation in 2019 were "fake" and revealing new details of a human smuggling allegation. Published April 18, 2025
AP loses bid to reclaim special access to White House
A federal judge on Friday gave tentative approval to a new White House press policy that demotes The Associated Press to the same status as newspapers, removing the storied wire service's previous special access to the president. Published April 18, 2025
Van Hollen meets with Kilmar Abrego Garcia in El Salvador
Sen. Chris Van Hollen met Thursday night with Kilmar Abrego Garcia, confirming the deported MS-13 gang suspect is alive after a month of incarceration in El Salvador's terrorist prison. Published April 17, 2025
Police reveal why they thought Kilmar Abrego Garcia was an MS-13 gang member
Shedding some light on a key issue in the fight over his deportation, Police gang experts reveal why they thought Kilmar Abrego Garcia was an MS-13 gang member. Published April 17, 2025
Appeals court warns Americans could be next after ‘shocking’ deportation of MS-13 suspect
Americans could be the next to be shunted off to foreign prisons if the Trump administration's "shocking" treatment of a deported MS-13 suspect is allowed to stand, a federal appeals court said in a climactic ruling Thursday. Published April 17, 2025
Supreme Court declines to revive Trump birthright citizenship policy — for now
The Supreme Court declined Thursday to block lower court rulings that paused President Trump's attempt to limit birthright citizenship, but put the case on their calendar for a rare oral argument session next month. Published April 17, 2025
Van Hollen fails in attempt to meet Abrego Garcia, wrongly deported MS-13 suspect
Sen. Chris Van Hollen said he was stopped by Salvadoran soldiers when he tried to visit Thursday with Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the MS-13 suspect who the senator claimed was "illegally abducted" and deported back to El Salvador. Published April 17, 2025
Judge rules Google has illegal ‘monopoly’ on web ad technology
Google has an illegal monopoly of some web advertising, a federal judge ruled Thursday, delivering a victory to the federal government that brought the antitrust challenge against the tech giant. Published April 17, 2025
Supreme Court expected to consider giving Trump more firing power, overruling 90-year-old precedent
President Trump's firing spree of independent agency leaders is running into a 90-year-old Supreme Court case that judges have used to block many of those ousters. Published April 17, 2025
‘Tell the truth’: Mother of murdered woman challenges White House reporters on immigration coverage
Patty Morin, mother of Rachel Morin, the Maryland mother slain by an illegal immigrant, challenged the White House press corps Wednesday to "tell the truth" about illegal immigration and crime. Published April 16, 2025
Sen. Van Hollen travels to El Salvador to demand return of deported MS-13 suspect
Sen. Chris Van Hollen made a pilgrimage to El Salvador Wednesday to demand the country release Kilmar Abrego Garcia, whom the U.S. deported last month, saying he was "illegally abducted" from Maryland and must be sent back. Published April 16, 2025
Judge raises the stakes in deportation battle with Trump
U.S. District Judge James Boasberg upped his feud with President Trump on Wednesday by finding probable cause to hold his administration in contempt of court for continuing to carry out deportations to El Salvador despite the judge's orders to turn around planes. Published April 16, 2025
White House changes rules for media access to Trump in latest strike against AP
The White House shut down the special access that wire services have long enjoyed to presidential events, as President Trump continues his battle against The Associated Press. Published April 16, 2025
‘Major questions doctrine’: Judge orders Trump to restart climate, green energy funding
A federal judge ordered the administration Tuesday to reopen the "spigots" for climate and clean energy funding programs, ruling against President Trump's funding pause. Published April 15, 2025
Judge fires back at Trump, Bukele as Democrats turn MS-13 gang suspect into new crusade
A federal judge reinforced her demand Tuesday that the U.S. keep working to bring back an MS-13 gang suspect wrongly deported to El Salvador, dismissing statements by that country's president against releasing Kilmar Abrego Garcia. Published April 15, 2025
Judge blocks Trump from ending controversial Biden ‘parole’ program for Venezuelans, others
A federal judge issued an order Monday evening blocking the Trump administration from rescinding the Biden administration's "parole" program for unauthorized migrants from Venezuela, Cuba, Haiti and Nicaragua, saying the move was too "arbitrary." Published April 14, 2025
State Department suggests deported Salvadoran man is beyond U.S. reach
The administration shows no sign of capitulating in its battle with judges who are pressuring President Trump to bring back Kilmar Abrego Garcia from El Salvador, with the State Department now saying he's beyond America's reach. Published April 13, 2025
U.S. says wrongly deported man is now in El Salvador’s ‘sovereign’ custody
Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the man the U.S. wrongly deported and who is now the subject of a major court battle, is "alive and secure" in a terrorism prison in El Salvador, the Trump administration said Saturday. Published April 12, 2025
