Stephen Dinan
Articles by Stephen Dinan
Senators unveil bill to stop visas, bring criminal charges for Russian election meddling
Senators announced legislation Thursday to impose a new set of sanctions on Russia, seeking to warn Moscow against future meddling while also reassuring European allies of American support, notwithstanding President Trump's unpredictable approach to them. Published August 2, 2018
3D-printed-gun design shared by activists despite judge order
A judge's attempt to halt the spread of blueprints for 3D-printed guns backfired Wednesday as the plans spread across the internet, posted and shared by people who said they were determined to strike a blow for free speech, to protect gun rights, or just to thumb their nose at the government. Published August 1, 2018
Chuck Grassley: Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation may take longer than we’d hoped for
Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh may not be on the Supreme Court for the start of the justices' new term in early October, a key senator signaled Wednesday, suggesting a slightly slower schedule than some Republicans had hoped for. Published August 1, 2018
Illegal immigrant from Guatemala charged with distributing child porn
Federal authorities this week arrested an illegal immigrant from Guatemala on charges of distributing child pornography videos through Facebook. Published August 1, 2018
U.S. appeals court: Trump ‘sanctuary cities’ order is illegal
A federal appeals court ruled President Trump's executive order punishing sanctuary cities by withholding money is unconstitutional -- but in a twist, the court cleared the way for the government to carry out the policy in much of the country. Published August 1, 2018
Ohio joins battle to force Lois Lerner records be released
Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine asked a judge Wednesday to release former IRS senior executive Lois G. Lerner's secret testimony about her actions during the Obama administration's tea party targeting, saying Americans deserve an "unvarnished publish accounting" of what Ms. Lerner did. Published August 1, 2018
Ted Wheeler, Portland mayor, refutes stand-down policy during anti-ICE protests
Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler says he never ordered police to ignore 911 calls from ICE employees who felt their lives were threatened during the June standoff between riotous protesters and employees who worked at the ICE building in Oregon's biggest city. Published August 1, 2018
Kavanaugh hearings likely to push to September
Judge Brett Kavanaugh may not be on the Supreme Court for the start of the justices' new term in early October, a key senator signaled Tuesday, suggesting a slightly slower schedule than some Republicans had hoped for. Published August 1, 2018
GOP focused on avoiding government shutdown
Congressional Republicans on Tuesday brushed off President Trump's threats of a government shutdown over border wall funding, saying that while money for the wall is important, they're not going to let it send Congress into partisan gridlock. Published July 31, 2018
Top health official warned feds against family separations
A senior government health official had warned the Trump administration against any policy that would lead to immigrant family separations after crossing the border illegally, and was assured no such plan was in the works -- only to see the Justice Department announce the zero-tolerance policy anyway. Published July 31, 2018
Paul Manafort will remain in jail during trial, court rules
Paul Manafort will remain behind bars while he fights two separate prosecutions, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday, upholding a district court judge's decision that Mr. Manafort tried to tamper with witnesses in the case against him. Published July 31, 2018
Grassley, Feinstein demand review of abuse of immigrants in detention
Two top senators called for an investigation Monday into reports of sexual abuse and other mistreatment of migrants being held in government custody. Published July 30, 2018
Feds nab man for smuggling ‘special interest’ migrants from Yemen
Federal authorities announced Monday that they had arrested a Jordanian man who they accused of smuggling people into the U.S. from Yemen, which is deemed a "special interest" country because of its connection to terrorism. Published July 30, 2018
ICE officers demand Portland mayor apologize for ‘Occupy ICE’ chaos
Portland's mayor violated the Constitution by ordering his police officers to stand down, allowing protesters to menace ICE employees over the last six weeks, according to agency employees who sent a cease-and-desist letter to the city Monday. Published July 30, 2018
Activists revive ‘Muslim ban’ challenge over lack of waivers
The Supreme Court may have upheld President Trump's travel ban, but several dozen Muslims are still challenging the way his administration is carrying it out, saying he's not living up to the terms he set for his own policy. Published July 30, 2018
National Archives releases first batch of Kavanaugh documents
The National Archives on Monday released the first big batch of documents from Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh's time in the independent counsel's office in the 1990s. Published July 30, 2018
Illegal immigrant court complaint: Bad food, chill, disease
Illegal immigrant families are furious at the treatment they received after being detained at the border, complaining of bad burritos, cold soups, being forced to drink water out of toilets and contagious disease outbreaks that have swept through the facilities. Published July 29, 2018
Mitch McConnell says Judge Brett Kavanaugh will be confirmed despite Democrats’ resistance
Republicans have sent the clearest signals yet that they will not allow Democratic foot-dragging to delay their push to confirm a new Supreme Court justice, ditching negotiations and plowing ahead with their own more-limited investigation into Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh's background. Published July 29, 2018
Judge: Border family reunification ‘has been completed’
The judge overseeing the chaos from President Trump's zero-tolerance border policy gave the government good marks for its efforts to reunify families, saying that for the parents the government has control over "that process has been completed." Published July 28, 2018
GOP sets deadline for Kavanaugh documents; Dems say they’re being cut out
Senate Judiciary Chairman Charles E. Grassley said Friday he's hit a wall in negotiations with Democrats over documents from Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh's past, and he moved unilaterally to request a more limited set of papers from his time in the Bush White House. Published July 27, 2018