Stephen Dinan
Articles by Stephen Dinan
Judge blocks Trump from ending amnesty for 350,000 migrants
A federal judge on Monday ordered Homeland Security to keep in place a deportation amnesty for 350,000 Venezuelan migrants who were about to lose their status, saying the Trump administration seemed to be acting on "negative stereotypes." Published March 31, 2025
Trump deportation order echoes Carter; review of students from Middle East sparks legal battles
A president signs an executive order sending immigration officers out to track down foreign students amid unrest in the Middle East, getting some to leave on their own and threatening to deport others. Published March 31, 2025
U.S. deports more Tren de Aragua gang members to El Salvador
The Department of Homeland Security carried out more deportations of migrants to El Salvador on Sunday night, ousting members of the Tren de Aragua and MS-13 gangs whom the government identified as "violent criminals." Published March 31, 2025
No Democrats allowed: Trump takes over bipartisan commissions such as FTC, NLRB
President Trump doesn't plan to appoint any Democrats to such decision-making panels as the National Labor Relations Board and the Federal Election Commission in his second term, the Washington Times has learned. Published March 30, 2025
Trump goes on offense in courts, sues to end union protections for 1 million feds
Pummeled by a wave of legal challenges, the administration went on offense, filing its own federal lawsuit to carry out President Trump's new executive order against public sector labor unions. Published March 29, 2025
‘Charade’: Federal judge spanks Trump over attempt to wind down consumer watchdog
A federal judge delivered a nasty rebuke Friday to the White House, ordering it to stop trying to wind down the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Published March 29, 2025
Judge blocks deportation of foreign student arrested for Palestinian support
A federal judge on Friday ordered the government not to report a foreign student from Turkey. Published March 28, 2025
Appeals court backs Musk, Trump in fight over shutting down USAID headquarters
A federal appeals court delivered a win to Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency on Friday, ruling that shutting down the headquarters and website of the U.S. Agency for International Development could go forward. Published March 28, 2025
Appeals court allows Trump firings of Democratic appointees
President Trump's power to fire got a boost Friday when a federal appeals court hit pause on two lower court rulings that had blocked him from ousting Democratic appointees from agency boards. Published March 28, 2025
Judge puts new crimp in Trump deportation plans with limits on third-country removals
A federal judge slapped new restrictions on President Trump's deportation efforts, ruling that he can't change the destination of migrants' removal without giving them a chance to argue against it in court. Published March 28, 2025
Judge extends blockade on Venezuelan gang deportations
Judge James Boasberg has stretched his stoppage of President Trump's ability to deport Venezuelan gang suspects as alien enemies, ordering the administration not to try to oust anyone until at least April 12. Published March 28, 2025
Trump asks Supreme Court to restart deportation of Venezuelan gang suspects
President Trump's lawyers have asked the Supreme Court to allow him to begin deporting Venezuelan gang suspects he's deemed terrorists and "alien enemies," saying lower court blockades are interfering with core presidential powers. Published March 28, 2025
Arrest of pro-Palestinian graduate student goes viral
Video showing the arrest of a Turkish graduate student in Massachusetts who has supported anti-Israel causes has gone viral and drawn condemnation from immigration groups that said it smacked of authoritarianism. Published March 27, 2025
Judge orders Trump team to preserve pre-attack Signal chat; feds say they were already doing it
The first round in the legal battle over leaked Signal chat messages about the U.S. attack on Houthi rebels fizzled Thursday as a judge ordered the government to do what it said it's already trying to do: preserve the records in accordance with the law. Published March 27, 2025
ICE lost track of tens of thousands of migrant kids, inspector general says
The government's deportation agency lost track of tens of thousands of illegal immigrant children who were released into communities and disappeared, the agency's inspector general reported Thursday. Published March 27, 2025
Appeals court maintains block on Trump administration’s spending freeze
A federal appeals court ruled Thursday to maintain a block on President Trump's attempt to pause a large swath of federal spending, saying the administration has not been able to prove the orders are legal. Published March 27, 2025
Feds nab MS-13 leader in Virginia, challenge sanctuary cities to work with Trump
U.S. authorities on Thursday said the MS-13's top leader on the East Coast was captured by federal agents in Northern Virginia. Published March 27, 2025
Appeals court upholds Judge Boasberg’s blockade on Venezuelan gang deportations
A federal appeals court on Wednesday upheld a judge's blockade on President Trump using the Alien Enemies Act to deport Venezuelan gang suspects, saying the administration appears to be stretching the law too far. Published March 26, 2025
Appeals court blocks judge’s order for Musk, DOGE to turn over records
A federal appeals court halted a lower court's order that had directed Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency to submit to legal discovery and turn over records about its operations, ruling Wednesday that the judge was too quick to allow it. Published March 26, 2025
Judge rejects Trump DOJ’s calls for recusal from case involving law firm linked to Steele dossier
U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell rejected the Justice Department's demand that she recuse herself from a case involving President Trump, saying Wednesday that the allegations against her were "innuendo and basic legal disagreements." Published March 26, 2025
