Stephen Dinan

‘Stimulus’ or not, Obama seeks new spending

Though he didn't call it a second stimulus, President Obama this weekend asked Congress to pass legislation that amounts to much the same thing: extending some of the first stimulus bill's programs and adding some of the White House's new priorities. Published June 13, 2010

Senate hands climate backers first win

Environmentalists scored their first major Senate victory Thursday as Democrats gave a green light to the EPA to impose strict new rules on greenhouse gas emissions. Published June 10, 2010

Administration seeks immigration-fees hike

The Obama administration on Wednesday proposed raising immigration fees by an average of 10 percent - a boost that surprised congressional offices and began anew the debate over how legal immigration is funded. Published June 9, 2010

Obama calls for cuts to spend on own policies

The White House said Tuesday it will continue to try to freeze non-security spending in next year's budget as President Obama seeks to counter the flood of red ink that has swept the federal budget over the last decade. Published June 8, 2010

Political parties lose control as Internet aids challengers

The Internet has become the great political equalizer, giving life this year to insurgent candidates who would never have been able to break through the near-complete control that political parties used to exercise over their nominations. Published June 8, 2010

Say when: Congress fills up on stimulus

Prodded by last week's disappointing job-creation numbers, Democrats and Republicans alike are calling for Congress to tackle yet another "jobs bill" — but after 2½ years of stimulus, and well more than $1 trillion committed, the appetite for stimulus spending has dropped. Published June 6, 2010

Arizona governor, Obama face off

Inside the Oval Office, the two went head-to-head as Jan Brewer demanded Obama take more steps to secure the U.S.-Mexico border, and they failed to make headway on the state's tough new immigration law. Published June 3, 2010

Obama promises cooperation on troops to Ariz.

After meeting Thursday with President Obama to hash out their differences over immigration and border security, Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer said she has won promises for better cooperation from the White House on National Guard troops but failed to make any headway on the state's new tough immigration law. Published June 3, 2010

Federal debt tops $13 trillion mark

The federal government is now $13 trillion in the red, the Treasury Department reported Wednesday, marking the first time the government has sunk that far into debt and putting a sharp point on the spending debate on Capitol Hill. Published June 2, 2010

Nation’s debt hits $13 trillion

The federal government is now $13 trillion in the red, the Treasury Department will announce Wednesday -- marking the first time the government has sunk that far into debt. Published June 2, 2010

Hill acts to keep Gitmo’s inmates out of U.S.

He has already missed his own self-imposed deadline, and President Obama's plans to close the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, suffered more setbacks last week when lawmakers on both sides of the Capitol took steps to block him. Published May 30, 2010

Obama’s Gitmo plan takes another hit

The Senate Armed Services Committee dealt a big setback to President Obama's plans to close the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay when lawmakers stripped funding for a new prison in Illinois to hold the detainees. Published May 28, 2010

Senate says no to 6,000 border troops

Democrats managed to block deployment of the National Guard to the Mexico border, but the proposal still garnered a majority, showing widespread support for strong border security and underscoring why Obama will struggle to win an immigration-legalization bill. Published May 27, 2010

Senate vote shows border security is winning issue

The Senate on Thursday blocked a move to deploy 6,000 National Guard troops to the U.S.-Mexico border, but the proposal still drew majority support, showing strong backing for border security in the first key test vote on immigration in months. Published May 27, 2010

NASA accused of ‘Climategate’ stalling

The man battling NASA for access to incriminating e-mails says the agency is withholding documents and that NASA may be trying to stall long enough to avoid hurting an upcoming Senate debate on global warming. Published May 26, 2010

U.S. debt flirts with unlucky number

News reports have jumped the gun in declaring it, lawmakers and staffers on Capitol Hill are awaiting it with a morbid glee, and some congressional aides suspect the government's slow-walking it. Published May 26, 2010

Obama to send troops to U.S.-Mexico border

The White House will send up to 1,200 National Guard troops to the U.S.-Mexico border and will ask Congress for $500 million to boost border security, officials said Tuesday, as President Obama tried to take control of the border security debate just as the Senate was about to take up a much bigger deployment. Published May 25, 2010

China stance on immigrants cited as U.S. returns fossils

A top member of the House immigration subcommittee on Tuesday blasted the U.S. government for agreeing to return ancient Chinese fossils smuggled here illegally, even as the communist country flouts international conventions by refusing to take back tens of thousands of illegal immigrants. Published May 25, 2010

CBO says stimulus kept unemployment rate lower

The stimulus law was responsible for funding between 1.2 million and 2.8 million jobs in the first quarter of this year and kept the unemployment rate lower than it would otherwise have been, the Congressional Budget Office said in a new analysis Tuesday. Published May 25, 2010

Obama to send troops to U.S.-Mexican border

The White House will send up to 1,200 National Guard troops to the U.S.-Mexico border and will ask Congress for $500 million to boost border security, officials said Tuesday. Published May 25, 2010