Stephen Dinan
Articles by Stephen Dinan
Hillary Clinton takes up Zika cause as mosquito-borne illness becomes political weapon
Zika is pushing all the buttons of American politics, with Hillary Clinton's call Tuesday to bring Congress back into session to spend more money -- and tack it on to the deficit -- just the latest sign. From abortion to spending to tricky calculations about birth defects and how much prevention is worth, Zika is forcing the political debate into new realms. Published August 9, 2016
Paul Ryan defeats Paul Nehlen in primary
House Speaker Paul D. Ryan romped to victory Tuesday in the Republican primary for his congressional seat, dealing another setback to insurgent tea party forces that hoped to make an example out of him. Published August 9, 2016
Obama’s forgiveness of gun crimes amid push for controls ‘most incredible hypocrisy’
Richard Reid was already a two-time felon when authorities searched his Delaware apartment and found marijuana, crack cocaine divided into sales-size plastic bags, powder cocaine, a scale -- and a loaded .32 caliber handgun, an unloaded .25 caliber pistol and ammunition for two other types of weapons. Published August 9, 2016
Donald Trump competitive in Florida, but collapsing in Pennsylvania: poll
Donald Trump remains competitive in Florida and trails narrowly in Ohio, but Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton has surged to a massive 10-point lead in Pennsylvania, according to the latest Quinnipiac University Poll of the major swing states. Published August 9, 2016
Justice Department lawyers to take remedial ethics classes after misleading judge in amnesty case
The Justice Department will order all of its civil division lawyers to take an hourlong remedial ethics class, hoping to head off even worse punishment from a federal judge who is furious about the way Obama administration attorneys misled him in the case involving the president's deportation amnesty. Published August 8, 2016
Obama administration’s Syrian refugee surge could approach 30,000 in next year
After a massive surge of effort, the administration is on pace to blow past President Obama's goal of 10,000 Syrian refugees this fiscal year, and could end up taking in more than 12,000 if the pace continues -- locking the next president into an even bigger 2017. Published August 7, 2016
Court rules sex website must comply with congressional subpoena
Backpage.com, one of the country's chief outlets for prostitutes and other adult services, must turn over records to a congressional probe that's looking into whether the website does enough to try to screen for victims of human trafficking, a judge ruled Friday. Published August 5, 2016
CBO: Deficit larger than expected
The federal government has sunk deeper into the red than analysts projected just five months ago, and is now poised to post a $590 billion shortfall this fiscal year, the Congressional Budget Office said Friday. Published August 5, 2016
Obama administration to go beyond 10,000 Syrian refugees
Administration officials said Friday that the 10,000 Syrian refugees President Obama wants to welcome this fiscal year is a floor, not a ceiling, and they can go even higher than that total. Published August 5, 2016
Court says IRS must prove it stopped tea party targeting
A federal appeals court slapped the IRS with yet another rebuke Friday, ruling that it did, in fact, discriminate against tea party groups and insisting the tax agency prove that it's permanently stopped the unconstitutional targeting of groups because of their political leanings. Published August 5, 2016
Gary Johnson’s lawsuit demanding Libertarians be in presidential debates tossed by court
Neither the Libertarian nor Green parties are guaranteed a space in this year's presidential debates, a federal court ruled Friday, dealing a blow to their candidates, who were counting on being able to get onto the stage in order to boost their long-shot bids. Published August 5, 2016
Melania Trump’s immigration file requested
Democrats demanded Thursday that the government release Melania Trump's immigration file after news reports and at least one prominent immigration lawyer raised questions about whether the wife of the Republican presidential nominee followed the law in entering and working in the U.S. Published August 4, 2016
Ted Cruz quiet after convention speech, working to rebuild political brand
Ted Cruz has gone quiet after his daring convention speech, firing off fundraising pleas for his 2018 Senate campaign but otherwise keeping a low profile as analysts say he does the hard work of rebuilding his political brand. Published August 3, 2016
Jeh Johnson sees signs of success in getting countries to take back illegals
Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson said he's seen some signs of progress in getting other countries to take their illegal immigrants back when the U.S. tries to deport them, and signaled he'd wait to see how those efforts play out before he'll commit to stripping visas from those that still refuse. Published August 3, 2016
House committee announces probe into Iran hostage payments
The House Oversight Committee said Wednesday it is probing the $400 million payment the U.S. shipped to Iran earlier this year, and said Secretary of State John Kerry should come to testify to Congress about it. Published August 3, 2016
Karen Bass, California Democrat, demands Donald Trump undergo psychiatric exam
A Democratic congresswoman is demanding Donald Trump undergo a psychological exam, saying he shows signs of a personality disorder that make him unfit to be president. Published August 3, 2016
Obama signs bill overturning Vermont’s GMO labeling law
Anti-GMO activists are seething at President Obama's quiet signature last week of a bill governing labeling of genetically modified foods, saying he was "cowardly" for approving it as the country's attention was still focused on the Democratic convention. Published August 2, 2016
Sanders supporters pan Clinton speech; just 21 percent excited over Dem ticket
Supporters of Sen. Bernard Sanders at last week's convention still aren't sold on Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, according to a survey of Sanders delegates released Tuesday that found few of them were won over by the four days of speeches urging unity. Published August 2, 2016
Hillary Clinton bounces out of convention, takes significant lead over Trump in polls
Hillary Clinton has soared to a substantial lead in polling after Democrats' convention last week, with one CNN survey even putting her above the 50 percent mark -- the first time she's been there since June. Published August 1, 2016
DHS grants Syrians special protections in U.S.
Homeland Security granted a new temporary amnesty Monday to more than 8,000 Syrians living in the U.S. right now, saying they can remain for up to 18 months longer no matter what their legal status. Published August 1, 2016
