Stephen Dinan
Articles by Stephen Dinan
Trump DACA phaseout legal, judge rules
A federal judge ruled Monday that President Trump's phaseout of the Obama-era DACA program is legal, adding heft to the administration's defense but doing little to solve the ongoing court quagmire. Published March 5, 2018
Marco Rubio, Bill Nelson push bill to bolster gun background check system, end ‘lie-and-try’ tactic
Florida's two U.S. senators announced a new bipartisan bill Monday to add teeth to the gun background check system by notifying local authorities in cases where someone lies to try to buy a gun illegally. Published March 5, 2018
‘Dreamers’ turn ire on Democrats as DACA deadline passes
Illegal immigrant Dreamers descended on Democrats' national headquarters in Washington on Monday, staging a sit-in and vowing to make sure the party gets at least some of the blame as Congress slipped past President Trump's March 5 deadline for action on DACA. Published March 5, 2018
DACA deadline passes with action in courts, not Congress
Monday was supposed to be the deadline either when illegal immigrant Dreamers began to lose their status under the Trump administration's phaseout of the Obama-era DACA deportation amnesty, or when Congress would swoop to the rescue and grant them a path to full citizenship rights. Published March 4, 2018
Md. AG defends Hillary Clinton lawyers against bar complaint
Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh's office offered a new explanation Friday for why the state has refused to pursue a bar complaint against Hillary Clinton's lawyers over their role in deleting her emails: They changed the rules. Published March 2, 2018
ICE blames California sanctuary law for illegals’ arrests
Federal immigration authorities said California's new sanctuary law forced this week's sweep that netted 232 illegal immigrants in the Bay Area -- and set off a massive controversy after Oakland's mayor gave a public warning that may have helped hundreds of other migrants elude arrest. Published March 2, 2018
Justice Department looking into bringing charges against Oakland mayor Libby Schaaf
The White House said Thursday that the Justice Department is looking into whether the Oakland mayor can face federal charges after she warned illegal immigrants of an impending enforcement sweep. Published March 1, 2018
White House defends ICE, Border Patrol from California attacks
Vice President Mike Pence delivered a fierce defense of federal immigration agents and officers Thursday, calling them "heroes," amid a growing opposition from California officials. Published March 1, 2018
Trump-California feud escalates to all-out warfare
Analysts said there was no comparison in recent memory for the sort of bad blood that's developed between President Trump and California's leaders, who have legislated, sued, tweeted and used just about every other tool at their disposal to try to stymie the administration. Published February 28, 2018
Libby Schaaf, Oakland mayor, helped criminal illegal immigrants escape, ICE chief says
More than 850 illegal immigrants managed to elude deportation officers conducting operations in Northern California this week, and the head of the deportation force on Tuesday blamed Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf for helping some of them escape. Published February 27, 2018
Supreme Court backs Donald Trump on illegal immigrant detention
Immigrants being held for deportation don't have an automatic right under the law to post bond and be set free, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled Tuesday in a decision that could give the Trump administration more freedom to pursue stiff detention policies for illegal immigrants who show up at the border claiming asylum. Published February 27, 2018
Donald Trump can build border wall, court rules
A federal court cleared the way Tuesday for President Trump to build his border wall, ruling that the administration has the power to waive a series of environmental laws to speed up construction. Published February 27, 2018
Senate GOP says gun debate will focus on background check records
Senate Republicans in charge of the next steps on gun control said Tuesday they want to focus on bills where there's broad agreement, such as expanding the number of records available in the background check system, while putting off thorny fights over weapons bans. Published February 27, 2018
Paul Ryan on shooting: ‘There was a colossal breakdown’
House GOP leaders said Tuesday they will look to correct systemic problems in background checks and law enforcement they said led to the Florida shooting, but said that won't include taking away rights of law-abiding citizens. Published February 27, 2018
Citizenship in jeopardy for five convicted of child sex abuse
The Justice Department moved this month to strip citizenship from five people convicted of child sex abuse -- two of whom came to the U.S. on exactly the kind of chain migration the Trump administration now wants to eliminate. Published February 26, 2018
Lawsuit: 100,000 noncitizens registered to vote in Pennsylvania
More than 100,000 noncitizens are registered to vote in Pennsylvania alone, according to testimony submitted Monday in a lawsuit demanding the state come clean about the extent of its problems. Published February 26, 2018
DACA program still active after Supreme Court declines to speed appeal
The Supreme Court declined Monday to speed up a case involving the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals deportation amnesty, refusing President Trump's request for immediate action and instead maintaining a lower court ruling that keeps the controversial program in operation. Published February 26, 2018
Carter Page ‘of interest’ to FBI for years, Democrat memo says
A Democrat-funded opposition research dossier was only a narrow part of the FBI's justification for obtaining a warrant to spy on a former Trump campaign official, congressional Democrats said in their long-awaited memo on the process that led to the snooping. Published February 25, 2018
Gun control debate greets Congress after Florida shooting
Congress appears to be settling on the outlines of consensus for action on stricter gun controls, with moves to strengthen the background check system and to restrict sales of bump stocks the most likely areas of bipartisan action. Published February 25, 2018
Democrats: Steele dossier only ‘narrow’ part of FBI surveillance application
A Democratic-funded opposition research dossier was only a "narrow" part of the FBI's justification for obtaining a warrant to spy on a former Trump campaign official, congressional Democrats said in their long-awaited memo, finally released Saturday, detailing the process that led to the snooping. Published February 24, 2018
