Stephen Dinan
Articles by Stephen Dinan
Disability fraud piles up as Social Security ties judges’ hands: lawmakers
Key members of Congress said Tuesday that two Social Security judges may have approved thousands of bogus disability claims, but the agency has never gone back to review those judges' cases to stop the ones that were fraudulent. Published April 8, 2014
Handling of former IRS employee Lois Lerner makes lawyers cringe
As the House prepares for several key votes on former Internal Revenue Service employee Lois G. Lerner and potential legal action, analysts say she and her attorney have mishandled their case by picking and choosing when they want to talk, and to whom they are willing to talk. Published April 7, 2014
Businesses ask Congress for more ‘high-tech’ visas
It took less than a week for businesses to apply for all 85,000 specialty visas under the government's H-1B program, which is generally used to bring high-tech workers into the country, and the quick pace could be the spark that reignites the immigration debate in Congress this year. Published April 7, 2014
Medicare will see boost, not cuts, in 2014
Bowing to intense election-year pressure from both Democrats and Republicans, the Obama administration reversed course Monday and said that rather than cutting Medicare Advantage payments, it will actually boost them next year. Published April 7, 2014
Feds run $413 billion deficit at halfway point of fiscal year
The federal government ran a $413 billion deficit through the first half of fiscal 2014, according to a new estimate Monday from the Congressional Budget Office that showed continued improvement in the nation's fiscal picture. Published April 7, 2014
Illegal immigrants stage sit-in in Capitol offices, protest Democrats
Three illegal immigrants were arrested Monday after they conducted a sit-in at the offices of two Democratic House members, according to activist groups who organized the protest. Published April 7, 2014
ACLU uses profiling charges against police to target Arizona’s illegal immigrant law
In a coordinated legal blitz against one of the nation's toughest anti-immigration statutes, the ACLU of Arizona last week accused the Tucson Police Department of violating protections included in the law, arguing that officers last year conducted an illegal stop of two men sitting in a van just because they were Hispanic. Published April 6, 2014
Immigration activists to keep vigil outside White House
Illegal immigrants and their supporters said Thursday they will keep up a continuous vigil outside the White House until President Obama agrees to stop deportations, as they seek to ramp up pressure on the White House. Published April 3, 2014
House GOP sets first vote to hold Lois Lerner in contempt over IRS targeting
House Republicans have scheduled a vote next week to hold Lois G. Lerner in contempt of Congress for refusing to testify about her role in the Internal Revenue Service's tea party targeting scandal, setting up a major battle over constitutional rights versus Congress' ability to oversee the government. Published April 3, 2014
Feds charge money for free reports that can be found on Google
The agency that congressional watchdogs criticized for charging other agencies tens of millions of dollars to buy reports already freely available online is actually charging people to buy the very watchdog report that criticizes it for charging people. Published April 3, 2014
No House floor vote to consider legalizing illegal immigrants
Democrats lost the first major immigration fight of the year Wednesday after Republicans — voting in unison in the House Budget Committee — rejected an effort to legalize illegal immigrants as part of the 2015 budget. Published April 2, 2014
Free-for-all: Supreme Court strikes down overall limit on campaign giving
The Supreme Court overturned aggregate campaign finance limits Wednesday, freeing wealthy Americans to give to as many federal candidates as they want — though the justices left in place the cap on how much can be given to any one person. Published April 2, 2014
Conservative group sues EPA over open-records requests
A conservative legal group sued the EPA on Tuesday, arguing that the agency engages in political discrimination when deciding which open-records requests it will fulfill. Published April 1, 2014
Balanced budget convention gains steam as congressman calls for official evaluation
Rep. Duncan Hunter on Tuesday asked Congress to evaluate whether enough states have officially called for a constitutional convention to propose a balanced budget amendment — marking the next step toward what could be an historic gathering. Published April 1, 2014
Paul Ryan’s final federal budget cuts $5 trillion, reaches balance in 2024
House Republicans on Tuesday proposed a new federal budget that would make deep cuts to domestic spending, trimming about $5 trillion from projected federal deficits over the next decade and finally reaching balance in 2024. Published April 1, 2014
New Mexico’s immigrant ruling to bolster gun rights cases
A federal judge ruled Monday that legal immigrants have the same right to concealed-carry permits as American citizens, in a New Mexico case that gun rights advocates said strengthens their argument that the Second Amendment is a fundamental personal right. Published March 31, 2014
Constitutional conundrum: Michigan demand for a balanced budget could trigger amendment convention
Michigan lawmakers last week voted to demand a balanced budget amendment to the U.S. Constitution, a move that could set into motion a never-tested, widely feared convention with the power to rewrite part of the founding document. Published March 31, 2014
Cesar Chavez resolution blocked by GOP
Republicans said they would have allowed a resolution to pass if Democrats had accepted additional language that recognized Chavez supported strict enforcement of immigration laws in order to help protect American workers' wages. Published March 31, 2014
Watchdog: ATF allowed official’s salary double-dip
A former ATF official who approved the botched Fast & Furious gun-running operation was allowed to double-dip on salary with the approval of his supervisors, according to an internal auditor's report that adds to the troubles surrounding the embattled agency. Published March 31, 2014
ICE agents catch and release most illegal immigrants, new report shows
Immigration agents tried to deport only about a fourth of the cases they encountered in 2013, said a report being released Monday from the Center for Immigration Studies that shows just how much President Obama's policies have cut down on potential enforcement. Published March 30, 2014
