Stephen Dinan
Articles by Stephen Dinan
Sanctuary cities policy in GOP cross-hairs
Seeking to shift the immigration debate's focus to the victims of criminal aliens, Republicans this week vowed to punish states that refuse to cooperate with federal authorities in deporting illegal immigrants. Published July 9, 2015
Illegals refuse to give up three-year amnesties
The Homeland Security Department is predictably having a devil of a time trying to get illegal immigrants to send back their three-year amnesty approvals, administration lawyers said as they admitted to a federal judge Thursday, saying that more than 40 percent of them remain outstanding. Published July 9, 2015
Fed data hack reached staggering 21 million
Federal officials acknowledged Thursday that hackers managed to steal information on more than 21 million Americans from the government's background check computers, including details of their health and financial histories, as the shocking outlines of the breach finally became clear. Published July 9, 2015
Nancy Pelosi: Take down southern flags with Confederate symbols
Democrats demanded Thursday that Congress rip down any state flag displayed by the U.S. Capitol that includes the Confederate battle emblem, sparking a bitter battle with Republicans who have been sent reeling by the flag debate. Published July 9, 2015
Congress pulls bill amid Confederate flag fight
South Carolina will pull the Confederate battle flag down from a Statehouse memorial Friday, but the national debate over the flag showed no sign of waning as Democrats in Washington, sensing momentum, moved to furl state flags at the Capitol that still include Confederate symbols. Published July 9, 2015
James Sensenbrenner, Robert Scott draft criminal justice reform
The government today can't even list all of the federal crimes it could use to charge someone -- a symbol of just how out of control the national criminal justice system is, said Reps. F. James Sensenbrenner Jr. and Robert C. Scott, two senior congressmen who hope to change the face of the nation's prison population. Published July 6, 2015
Obama defies federal judge, fails to rescind wrongly issued amnesties
The Obama administration still hasn't fully rescinded the 2,000 three-year amnesties it wrongly issued four months ago in violation of a court order, government lawyers recently admitted in court, spurring a stern response from the judge who said the matter must be cleaned up by the end of July — or else. Published June 29, 2015
Bishops blast Supreme Court’s same-sex marriage ruling as ‘tragic error’
The Supreme Court's ruling requiring all states to recognize same-sex marriages is a "tragic error," America's Catholic bishops said Friday, vowing to continue teaching the value of traditional marriage to their congregations. Published June 26, 2015
Hillary Clinton’s Benghazi emails withheld from State Dept., panel says
Former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton didn't turn over all of her work-related emails to the department despite her claims to have done so, the Benghazi investigative committee charged Thursday in a statement raising new questions about the Democratic presidential candidate's email practices. Published June 25, 2015
Congress clears final major piece of Obama trade deal
Congress cleared the second part of the trade package Thursday after House Democrats reversed themselves and voted for new assistance for workers displaced by free trade agreements, cementing fast-track negotiating powers President Obama will use to finalize a major Pacific Rim deal. Published June 25, 2015
Chief Justice Roberts saves Obamacare for 2nd time; Scalia chides: ‘Words have no meaning’
Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. has saved Obamacare for a second time, writing the majority opinion Thursday that upheld the health care law's key provision of paying tax subsidies to customers in all states and saying the law otherwise would be a mess -- something he doubted Congress intended. Published June 25, 2015
IRS erased Lois Lerner’s emails even after subpoena, audit says
The IRS erased backup takes with Lois G. Lerner's emails even after the messages were subject to a congressional subpoena, but it was an "unbelievable" chain of coincidences rather than a malicious intent to subvert Congress, the tax agency's inspector general said Thursday. Published June 25, 2015
Congress approves Obama trade powers
Congress granted fast-track trade negotiating powers to the White House Wednesday, surmounting the objections of liberal and conservative pressure groups who'd tried to scuttle the bipartisan deal, which delivers a tremendous win to President Obama. Published June 24, 2015
Congress ponders: OPM data breach could total 32 million Americans
As many as 32 million Americans might have had their most sensitive data stolen in a breach of the federal government's human resources agency computers, lawmakers speculated Wednesday as pressure grew on President Obama to oust the woman who heads the agency that botched its cybersecurity. Published June 24, 2015
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
