Stephen Dinan
Articles by Stephen Dinan
IRS breaking federal law in paying contracts to tax cheats: audit
The IRS has been paying millions to tax-cheat contractors who owe millions of dollars in debt to the federal government, the agency's inspector general said in a report Wednesday that said the payments even break federal law. Published June 24, 2015
DHS to free illegal immigrant families
Homeland Security will begin releasing more illegal immigrant families from detention, Secretary Jeh Johnson announced Wednesday as he bowed to political pressure from activists and members of Congress who'd called the conditions inhumane for families. Published June 24, 2015
Feds unsure how hackers got credentials to hit HR system
Federal officials still don't know how hackers got a hold of credentials that allowed them to break into the government's main human resources computer system, stealing the most sensitive personal information on millions of Americans, the agency chief told Congress on Tuesday. Published June 23, 2015
Anti-Confederate sentiment spreads after South Carolina flag debate
South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley's demand to revisit the Confederate battle flag's placement on the Statehouse grounds is sparking a national conversation beyond the emblem, with some leaders calling for statues and nicknames associated with the Confederacy to go as well. Published June 23, 2015
Obama amnesty reaches illegals in prisons, jails
The Obama administration has ordered agents to begin ignoring many of the illegal immigrants they encounter in local prisons and jails, as the president begins to implement a lesser-known part of his deportation amnesty program -- a move that's not sitting well with either side in the immigration debate. Published June 23, 2015
Trade deal overcomes filibuster
Pro-trade senators surmounted yet another filibuster test Tuesday, setting a package of free-trade bills on the path to President Obama's desk by the end of this week -- unless House Democrats decide to embarrass their party leader once more. Published June 23, 2015
Climate change, doubt of Obama risk trade deal
Global warming has emerged as the newest battleground on trade, with opponents on both the right and the left trying to use the hot-button issue to sink President Obama's quest for a legacy-building free trade deal. Published June 22, 2015
Supreme Court rules in raisin case that gov’t can’t take property without compensation
The government can't swoop in and steal your property without paying for it, the Supreme Court ruled Monday in a decision that compared the Agriculture Department's antiquated raisin-requisition scheme to the bossy Queen Marie Antoinette -- who famously lost her head on the guillotine. Published June 22, 2015
New emails reignite Hillary Clinton email scandal
Congress released nearly 200 pages of newly uncovered emails involving former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, raising questions Monday about whether the Obama administration and the Democratic presidential candidate herself were truthful when they said they turned over all of her email communications on Benghazi. Published June 22, 2015
Migrants traveling in Mexico attacked by armed gangs
Hundreds of migrants have been attacked by armed gangs wearing military-style uniforms as they've tried to cross through Mexico this month, Amnesty International said in a new warning about the dangerous journey many Central Americans are making to try to make it to the U.S. Published June 21, 2015
Repealing Obamacare would boost economy, but drive deficits deeper: CBO
Repealing Obamacare would spur the economy, adding more than half a percent to the gross domestic product at the beginning of the next decade, the Congressional Budget Office said in a new analysis Friday that still found repeal would be bad for the federal deficit. Published June 19, 2015
Cesar Vargas, illegal immigrant ‘Dreamer’, sees law license suspended
The illegal immigrant "Dreamer" whose law license was approved by New York just two weeks ago, announced Thursday that his license has been delayed because he is on probation from charges stemming from his activism. Published June 18, 2015
Government shutdown showdown begins as Democrats filibuster defense spending bill
Senate Democrats filibustered the annual defense spending bill Thursday, marking the beginning of shutdown summer -- a monthslong battle between Republicans who want to increase government spending by some $40 billion next year and Democrats who say at least twice that is needed. Published June 18, 2015
Trade deal revived; House approves ‘fast-track’ powers
Congress revived the massive trade deal Thursday after the House voted for a do-over of last week's Democratic debacle that embarrassed President Obama and dismayed potential trading partners. Published June 18, 2015
GOP leaders vow to resurrect Obama trade deal
Republican leaders will try to resurrect the trade deal Democrats sank less than a week ago, planning a revote Thursday and insisting they will corral enough votes to approve fast-track negotiating powers that President Obama needs to complete a legacy-building Pacific Rim agreement. Published June 17, 2015
Government debt threatens to send U.S. economy into death spiral, CBO warns
Rising federal debt threatens to choke economic growth within a decade, beginning a death spiral that will sap revenue from government programs even as demands grow, forcing the government to borrow even more, Congress' budget watchdog said in a frightening report Tuesday. Published June 16, 2015
House gives Obama trade vote do-over
The House on Tuesday bought itself another month and a half to pass fast-track trade negotiating powers for President Obama -- though it remains unclear whether the White House will be able to sway enough votes for it to matter. Published June 16, 2015
Jason Chaffetz: Federal cybersecurity ‘stinks’
The House's top investigator said federal cybersecurity at the government's human resources agency "stinks," and said Tuesday the Office of Personnel Management's efforts to clean up after a breach that saw hackers steal data on millions of Americans fall far short of what's needed. Published June 16, 2015
Obama amnesty extends to businesses that hire illegals
President Obama took office vowing to go after unscrupulous employers who hire illegal immigrants, but worksite audits have plunged over the last year and a half, according to a report released Tuesday by the Center for Immigration Studies, tumbling along with the rest of immigration enforcement. Published June 16, 2015
Obama reneging on sequestration promises four years after deal
Four years after agreeing to "sequestration" budget cuts, the White House has emphatically told Congress that President Obama will no longer abide by them and will use his veto to insist that lawmakers boost spending on defense and domestic programs alike. Published June 16, 2015
