Stephen Dinan
Articles by Stephen Dinan
John Boehner demands Obama do-over on Islamic State war request
House Speaker John A. Boehner said Tuesday that President Obama should withdraw his current war request from Congress and "start over," coming up with an entirely new strategy to fight the Islamic State after this weekend's setback in Iraq. Published May 19, 2015
Obama seeks to end immigration enforcement by local, state police
The administration issued a report Monday saying that in order to rebuild trust between police and their communities, the federal government should stop enlisting state and local police in most immigration enforcement, setting up another challenge as President Obama tries to please immigrant rights advocates while carrying out deportations. Published May 18, 2015
Rand Paul: Hillary Clinton will have to answer for Libya invasion
Sen. Rand Paul said Monday that if the GOP nominates him to run for president in 2016, he will be able to compete for votes in a Democratic stronghold like Philadelphia, particularly against Democratic frontrunner Hillary Rodham Clinton. Published May 18, 2015
Ben Carson comes to Carly Fiorina’s defense on GOP debate participation
GOP presidential hopeful Ben Carson demanded fellow candidate Carly Fiorina be allowed in the upcoming primary debates the Republican Party is sponsoring, saying it would be embarrassing for her to be left off. Published May 16, 2015
DHS blames tech glitch for violating judge’s amnesty injunction
The Obama administration blamed a technology glitch for why it continued to approve new amnesty applications in February, even after a federal judge issued an injunction, telling the court late Friday that they are now begging about 2,000 illegal immigrants to tear up their three-year work authorizations. Published May 16, 2015
Obama trade deal complicated by Senate’s China currency manipulation crackdown
Brushing aside President Obama's objections, the Senate voted overwhelming Thursday to push back against China and other countries deemed guilty of depressing their own currencies to win a trade advantage versus the U.S., potentially complicating the White House's push for fast-track trade negotiating powers. Published May 14, 2015
House cancels illegal immigrant Dreamer path to military service
House Republicans voted Thursday to strike language that would have pushed the administration to allow illegal immigrant Dreamers to sign up for the military, in a move whose symbolism far outstripped its effect. Published May 14, 2015
Jeh Johnson honors heroic DHS employees
From the TSA agent who helped distract the attacker at the New Orleans airport to a Federal Protective Service inspector who grabbed a woman trying to jump off the Woodrow Wilson Bridge just outside Washington, Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson recognized a dozen department employees Thursday for valor. Published May 14, 2015
John Boehner: Blaming GOP for Amtrak crash is ‘stupid’
Accusations that Republicans are responsible for this week's deadly Amtrak train crash because of funding fights are "stupid," House Speaker John A. Boehner said Thursday, bristling at a question about the matter during his weekly press conference. Published May 14, 2015
Immigration enforcement system dysfunction tears apart family
In the end, their flights almost overlapped: The 11-year-old boy on his way to the U.S., granted a one-year parole to escape violence in his home of El Salvador, arrived in Dallas just a week after his uncle, Elvin Marroquin Diaz, whose testimony helped earn the boy his parole, was deported back to El Salvador. Published May 13, 2015
ICE releasing some illegals without knowing criminal history
The Homeland Security Department can't yet say how many illegal immigrants it's releasing under President Obama's prosecutorial discretion policies, and sometimes agents cut loose illegal immigrants without ever knowing their full criminal history, the department's inspector general said in a new report Wednesday. Published May 13, 2015
NSA phone snooping rejected by House; Patriot Act rewrite approved
Democrats and Republicans in the House linked arms Wednesday and voted to cancel the NSA's phone-snooping program and end all bulk data collection, approving a rewrite of the Patriot Act just weeks before the law's key provisions are due to expire. Published May 13, 2015
Sally Quillian Yates wins confirmation as deputy attorney general
The Senate confirmed Sally Quillian Yates on Wednesday to be deputy attorney general, giving her overwhelming support to fill the No. 2 spot at the Justice Department just weeks after her boss, Attorney General Loretta Lynch, struggled to make it through her own confirmation. Published May 13, 2015
Obama trade bill revived after bipartisan deal sets new votes
Senate leaders reached a deal Wednesday to revive trade legislation that Democrats had appeared to have scuttled just a day earlier, breathing new life into the centerpiece of President Obama's economic agenda -- though House Democrats vowed a tougher fight still awaits. Published May 13, 2015
Hispanics supportive of Democratic agenda open to vote for GOP
Hispanic voters like expansive federal spending, want to see an increase in the minimum wage, say the deficit should be solved by raising taxes and view tackling global warming as a major issue -- but nearly half say they're still open to voting for a Republican in next year's elections, according to Latino activists and pollsters. Published May 12, 2015
Obama after trade deal defeat: This is personal for me
Minutes after his former Democratic colleagues in the Senate filibustered his trade deal, President Obama sent a message to supporters declaring the fight was "personal for me" and pleading with liberals to rally around him. Published May 12, 2015
Democrats filibuster Obama’s trade bill
Senate Democrats filibustered Tuesday to stop the first major free trade deal vote in years, administering an embarrassing setback to President Obama, who had pleaded with his own party to back him on his top domestic priority for his final years in office. Published May 12, 2015
Obama supports Patriot Act changes to nix NSA phone-snooping program
President Obama called for a rewrite of the Patriot Act Tuesday, including nixing his NSA's phone-snooping program, in a new statement of administration policy urging Congress to adopt reforms that would end warrantless bulk collection powers. Published May 12, 2015
Rand Paul threatens filibuster ahead of looming Patriot Act fight
Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky is threatening a filibuster as key parts of the Patriot Act come up for reauthorization in the coming weeks. Published May 12, 2015
Illegal immigrant children border crossings down 58 percent from 2014 surge
The renewed flood of illegal immigration children anticipated this year hasn't materialized, as children are crossing at far lower rates than last year and even lower than 2013, according to new Border Patrol statistics that suggest some of the things the Obama administration did are helping. Published May 11, 2015
