Stephen Dinan

Slaughter ban sending horses across borders

Congress imposed a back-door ban on horse slaughter in 2006 to try to improve humane conditions, but a new government report says it has backfired and the same horses are now being exported for slaughter in Canada and Mexico, and they likely are suffering more along the journey. Published June 23, 2011

Obama administration to let the oil flow

Seeking to cap summertime gas prices, the Obama administration said Thursday it will tap the country's strategic oil stockpiles for a temporary boost. Published June 23, 2011

A do-nothing Congress could solve deficit woes, CBO says

Inside the latest long-term budget analysis from Congress' chief scorekeeper is a stunning bit of news: If Congress did nothing, the government's deficit problems would be mostly solved. Published June 22, 2011

Senate-House showdown draws near on Libya

Congress moved toward a showdown on President Obama's troop deployment in Libya, with two veteran senators on Tuesday introducing legislation to validate his moves and the House setting up competing votes, including one that would force him to end combat missions. Published June 21, 2011

Senators move to authorize Libya mission

Congress moved toward a showdown on President Obama's troop deployment in Libya, with two veteran senators on Tuesday introducing legislation to validate his moves and the House setting up competing votes, including one that would force him to end combat missions. Published June 21, 2011

Huntsman vows to be different GOP candidate

Painting himself as the sunny, optimistic Republican choice, former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. on Tuesday officially joined the 2012 GOP presidential field, laying out a broad call to push through tough economic times, but with few specifics on how he would do so. Published June 21, 2011

Libya testing limits of War Powers Resolution

American unmanned aerial vehicles are making surgical strikes on Libyan targets, and U.S. forces have expended $400 million worth of munitions in defending the rebellion against Col. Moammar Gadhafi's forces, but the administration says that doesn't mean the country is at war — at least not for the purposes of the 1973 War Powers Resolution. Published June 20, 2011

President’s fidelity to oath on autopilot?

One day after Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. helped President Obama bungle the oath of office on Inauguration Day 2009, the president held a do-over at the White House out of "an abundance of caution" over constitutional hiccups. Published June 19, 2011

Obama extends National Guard deployment on southern border

President Obama notified Congress Friday he will keep 1,200 National Guard troops on the border for at least another three months, following demands from southwest lawmakers who said there is still work to be done on security. Published June 17, 2011

Obama administration changes deportation focus

Under fire for its stepped-up deportation program, the Obama administration said Friday it will take a number of steps intended to focus on criminal aliens and make it less likely illegal immigrants without convictions are deported. Published June 17, 2011

Senate strikes at ethanol handout

In a signal that austerity is now the prevailing attitude on Capitol Hill, the Senate voted Thursday to end billions of dollars in annual tax credits for blended ethanol — a once-sacrosanct program that has fallen victim to troubled government finances. Published June 16, 2011

Objecting ATF agents ‘told to fall in line’

Federal agents testified to Congress on Wednesday that their superiors told them to stand down and watch as weapons flowed from gun dealers in Arizona to criminals and violent drug cartels in Mexico part of a now-discredited operation designed to catch gunrunners. Published June 15, 2011

Lawmakers sue to end U.S. role in Libya fight

A bipartisan group of House lawmakers went to court Wednesday to try to stop President Obama's troop deployment to Libya, saying it violates the law, but the White House submitted a report to Congress arguing that it is adhering to the War Powers Resolution because it is not actually engaged in "hostilities." Published June 15, 2011

Kucinich demands international court probe of Libya mission

Rep. Dennis J. Kucinich, who on Wednesday went to a U.S. court in an effort to stop President Obama's troop deployment in Libya, also has told the United Nations and the International Criminal Court to look into whether NATO's bombing campaign has broken international law. Published June 15, 2011

Senate preserves ethanol subsidy, for now

The Senate voted Tuesday to preserve billions of dollars in government subsidies for ethanol in a vote that showed senators are not yet ready to undo the corporate handouts that have proliferated throughout the tax code in recent decades. Published June 14, 2011

Boehner gives Obama Friday deadline on Libya

Stepping up a simmering constitutional conflict, House Speaker John A. Boehner warned President Obama on Tuesday that unless he gets authorization from Congress for his military deployment in Libya, he will be in violation of the War Powers Resolution. Published June 14, 2011

CBO: ‘Great deal of the pain’ of downturn still to come

Congress' official scorekeeper said Tuesday that the United States will continue to see slow economic growth for the next several years as job openings and a lack of demand for goods and services continue to block a speedier rebound. Published June 14, 2011

Ethanol vote to set off GOP subsidy battles

A long-simmering fight among Republicans will burst onto the public stage Tuesday when the Senate votes on eliminating government subsidies for ethanol producers — the first skirmish in what is expected to be a much bigger war over tax breaks, carve-outs and other taxpayer funding that boosts U.S. businesses and can fund American jobs. Published June 13, 2011

Weiner asks for leave from House as pressure to resign grows

Amid reports of an expanding official investigation into his online habits, top House Democrats on Saturday called on Rep. Anthony Weiner — but he reportedly said he will instead take a leave of absence and seek treatment. Published June 11, 2011

Romney runs in front; Dems try trip-ups

In the past month, Mitt Romney has delivered a widely panned defense of the health care legislation he signed as governor of Massachusetts and been the constant target of national Democratic attacks -- and also has seen his poll numbers rise and his status solidified as the best-positioned candidate to win the GOP nomination and take on President Obama. Published June 9, 2011