Stephen Dinan
Articles by Stephen Dinan
Trump conquers CPAC 10 years after hostility
Like so much of the rest of the political right -- from Reaganism to the tea party movement -- Donald Trump has conquered CPAC, bringing it into the broader MAGA fold. Published February 20, 2025
Judge declines to stop Trump’s firing of probationary federal workers
A federal judge on Thursday rejected labor unions' request for a restraining order halting President Trump's firing of thousands of new federal employees who were still working on a probationary period. Published February 20, 2025
Man who sold guns to illegal immigrants gets 12-year prison sentence
A man who sold guns to illegal immigrants in Texas near the U.S.-Mexico border was sentenced Thursday to more than 12 years in prison. Published February 20, 2025
Homeland Security deputizes State Department personnel to enforce immigration
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has deputized up to 600 law enforcement officers from the State Department to serve as immigration enforcement officers. Published February 20, 2025
State Department to designate MS-13, Tren de Aragua as terrorist organizations
The State Department designated two migrant gangs and six Mexican cartels as terrorist organizations, following through on a campaign promise President Trump made to step up pressure on the groups. Published February 19, 2025
Trump, Associated Press enter ring for media supremacy; presidential power vs. press freedom
Amid all of the fights the new president has picked so far, his feud with The Associated Press is the spiciest: one part petty, one part subversive and one part pure power politics. Published February 19, 2025
Poverty level surged among new immigrants under Biden
The immigrants President Biden welcomed to the U.S. over the last four years were poorer and less educated than their predecessors, according to a new study released Wednesday. Published February 19, 2025
Catholic bishops sue Trump administration to demand restart of refugee money
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops sued the Trump administration on Tuesday, asking a federal judge to order the State Department to restart the taxpayer money that the bishops say they need in order to help refugees. Published February 18, 2025
Feds bust migrant crime ring suspected in burglaries at sports stars’ homes
Federal prosecutors revealed charges Tuesday against seven Chilean migrants accused of running a sophisticated burglary ring that targets pro athletes across the country, Published February 18, 2025
Judge unconvinced by blue states’ alarm at Musk’s role in federal government
A federal judge backed Elon Musk on Tuesday, rejecting an attempt by Democrat-led states to shut down his work with President Trump's Department of Government Efficiency. Published February 18, 2025
U.S. deported 14,470 people to Mexico since Trump took office
Mexico says it has been the recipient of 14,470 deportees since President Trump took office on Jan. 20 -- a rate that's slightly lower than in the final year of the Biden administration. Published February 18, 2025
Judge blocks Trump’s firing of Biden appointee to MSPB
A federal judge on Tuesday ordered the government to restore Cathy A. Harris to her position on the Merit Systems Protection Board, saying it appears President Trump's attempt to fire her was illegal. Published February 18, 2025
Smuggling crackdown jacks up cartel prices; up to $30,000 to reach U.S. interior
Mexican migrants, who usually pay the lowest rates, are now regularly shelling out $10,000 apiece, and prices as high as $16,000 are not unusual, according to The Washington Times' database of border smuggling cases. Published February 18, 2025
Musk doesn’t run DOGE, White House says
Elon Musk doesn't have independent powers to fire anyone from federal agencies, the Justice Department has told a federal judge, shooting down some of critics' more fantastical theories about the head of President Trump's effort to remake the bureaucracy. Published February 18, 2025
Laser from Mexico targets DHS helicopter
Someone on the Mexican side of the border aimed a laser at a Homeland Security helicopter that was patrolling along the boundary this month, the U.S. government said Tuesday. Published February 18, 2025
Catch and release is over, DHS says; January saw lowest border numbers since summer of 2020
Homeland Security saw illegal immigration plummet in January, according to new data published Tuesday that showed the border had the lowest level of migrants detected since the early days of the coronavirus pandemic. Published February 18, 2025
Court watchers expect Supreme Court will take up Trump’s firings, birthright citizenship challenge
The first legal challenge to President Trump's aggressive agenda is now heading to the Supreme Court after he asked the justices to remove a lower court order that blocked him from ousting a top government watchdog. Published February 18, 2025
Federal agencies give Trump’s Truth Social the cold shoulder
President Trump may own Truth Social, but his own federal agencies have been reluctant to get on it. Published February 18, 2025
Time to go: DHS tells illegal immigrants to ‘self-deport and stay out’
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem launched what the department called an international ad campaign on Monday urging illegal immigrants to "self deport and stay out." Published February 17, 2025
Trump cleaves through federal workforce with ‘probationary’ firings
President Trump has taken a cleaver to the federal bureaucracy over the last week, sparing almost no part of the government as agencies fired thousands of recently hired employees that his administration says it can do without. Published February 16, 2025
