Stephen Dinan
Articles by Stephen Dinan
Ghost town: 10% of federal workforce is totally remote, 50% of the rest telework some days a week
Working remotely has consumed the federal bureaucracy to the point that 10% of the workforce -- some 228,000 employees -- never show up at an office, according to a new report Wednesday by the House's oversight committee. Published January 15, 2025
Biden ends term with nearly 11 million illegal border crossers
President Biden will end his term with a record of nearly 11 million illegal immigrants detected during his time in office, according to Homeland Security data released Tuesday. Published January 14, 2025
Biden leaves Trump with deteriorating deficit
The federal government has run a $711 billion deficit over the last three months of 2024, the Treasury Department reported Tuesday, underscoring the worsening budget picture that President Biden will turn over to President-elect Donald Trump. Published January 14, 2025
388 noncitizens voted legally in D.C.’s election
Some 388 noncitizens cast ballots in the District of Columbia's local elections in November, according to data released Tuesday by Judicial Watch that suggests the city's groundbreaking experiment in expanding its voter pool saw only tepid interest. Published January 14, 2025
Man with blowtorch near California fire is an illegal immigrant
Homeland Security confirmed Tuesday that a man who sparked interest after being spotted with a blowtorch near one of the California fires is an illegal immigrant with a criminal record. Published January 14, 2025
‘Minor president’: Biden battles to build legacy as historians downgrade his greatness
For better or worse, President Biden will go down in history as the turkey sandwiched between Donald Trump's two slices of bread. Published January 14, 2025
Bullets and lobster tails: Pentagon spends nearly $80 billion in one-month spree
The Defense Department went on its biggest monthlong spending spree since the height of the war on terror, dumping nearly $80 billion in a rush to empty its accounts before the end of the fiscal year. Published January 14, 2025
DOGE challenge: Waste watchdog dares Musk, Ramaswamy to cut $800 billion lost to fraud
The federal government spends as much as $800 billion annually on fraudulent benefit payments, according to a leading expert, who said the incoming Trump administration could reduce the federal deficit without slashing departments or agencies. Published January 13, 2025
Big bet: Political betting market Kalshi hires Donald Trump Jr.
Donald Trump Jr., son of the president-elect, has linked up with online betting market Kalshi, which broke new legal ground last year in becoming the first U.S. bookmaker to allow largely unrestricted gambling on election outcomes. Published January 13, 2025
Biden moves to block Trump by renewing ‘temporary’ migrant amnesty
President Biden on Friday gave more than 234,000 refugees from El Salvador another 18 months of amnesty from deportation. Published January 12, 2025
DHS renews deportation amnesty for nearly 1 million migrants
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas renewed temporary protected status -- an amnesty from deportation -- for hundreds of thousands of migrants on Friday, rushing to lock in protection before the next Trump administration takes office. Published January 10, 2025
Justices weighing national security vs. free speech in TikTok case
TikTok's fate now rests in the hands of the Supreme Court, which grappled Friday with whether the company's ties to a foreign adversary are so deep that national security concerns outweigh the company's and its users' First Amendment free speech rights. Published January 10, 2025
Laken Riley Act clears first filibuster test as Democrats rush to back Trump-style immigration bill
Last year the Laken Riley Act couldn't even get a sniff of action in the Senate. Published January 9, 2025
Laken Riley Act clears key filibuster test in Senate; bill pushes DHS to detain criminal migrants
Senators gave a boost Thursday to the Laken Riley Act, voting to head off an initial filibuster of legislation that would push Homeland Security to detain and try to deport illegal immigrants who commit theft or shoplifting crimes. Published January 9, 2025
Guatemalan illegal immigrant in Florida ran guns that were used in crimes in Dominican Republic
A Guatemalan migrant living in the U.S. illegally under a fake identity unlawfully bought hundreds of AK-47 rifles and Glock pistols and shipped them to customers in Haiti and the Dominican Republic, where some were used in crimes. Published January 9, 2025
Road trip tumult: Energy Dept. blistered for wasting taxpayer money on electric vehicle boondoggle
Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm abused American taxpayers with her 2023 publicity road trip in an electric vehicle, said an inspector general who accused her team of overselling their expenses on some travel vouchers and choosing expensive hotel rooms when cheaper ones were available. Published January 8, 2025
Jimmy Carter’s memorial earns taxpayers one-day reprieve
Taxpayers have a one-day reprieve for any payments or returns that are supposed to be due on Thursday, the IRS said, citing the national day of mourning for former President Jimmy Carter. Published January 8, 2025
Truckers file lawsuit to carry guns across state lines
Two truckers have filed a lawsuit challenging Minnesota's gun laws, saying the state won't let them carry their firearms as they drive its roads, even though they're legally licensed to publicly carry their weapons in their home states. Published January 8, 2025
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene announces bill to rename ‘Gulf of Mexico’ as ‘Gulf of America’
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene said Tuesday she is writing legislation to officially rename the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America, as she moves to carry out one of President-elect Donald Trump's latest territorial ideas. Published January 7, 2025
House passes Laken Riley Act to deport illegal immigrants who commit lower-level crimes
The House on Tuesday took the first steps toward President-elect Donald Trump's promised immigration crackdown, passing a bill that would press Homeland Security to detain and deport illegal immigrants arrested for even minor theft crimes such as shoplifting. Published January 7, 2025
