The Washington Times

Patrick J. Leahy

Latest Patrick J. Leahy Items
  • The Senate's bipartisan "Gang of Eight" holds a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington on Thursday, April 18, 2013. In front from left to right are Sen. Marco Rubio, Florida Republican; Sen. Charles E. Schumer, New York Democrat; Sen. Lindsey Graham, South Carolina Republican; and Sen. John McCain, Arizona Republican. The legislation would dramatically remake the U.S. immigration system by ushering in new visa programs for low- and high-skilled workers, requiring a tough new focus on border security, instituting a new requirement for all employers to check the legal status of their workers, and installing a path to citizenship for 11 million immigrants in the country illegally. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

    Crumbling coalition? First cracks in immigration deal emerge

    Senators fended off changes to the immigration bill in committee on Tuesday, but the first cracks emerged in the carefully crafted compromise between business groups and labor unions, leaving even some supporters frustrated at the defensive votes they had to cast.


  • **FILE** Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick J. Leahy, Vermont Democrat (Associated Press)

    EDITORIAL: The immigration poison pill

    The immigration "reform" cooked up by the Gang of Eight is finally on the front burner in Congress. The Senate Judiciary Committee will mark up the comprehensive package Thursday, and already it appears the process is doomed to failure, and by design.


  • **FILE** Illegal immigrants prepare to enter a bus after being processed at the U.S. Border Patrol's Tucson Sector headquarters on Aug. 9, 2012, in Tucson, Ariz. (Associated Press)

    DHS management problems could hinder immigration bill: audit

    The chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee introduced amendments Tuesday to grant gay couples the same immigration rights as other married couples, setting up a key hurdle for the immigration bill.


  • Rudolph W. Giuliani

    Giuliani: Boston bombings show threat of homegrown jihadists

    Former New York City Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani said the Obama administration should ratchet up its focus on homegrown terrorists and their links to overseas jihadists despite the death of Osama bin Laden, citing the Boston Marathon bombings as a reminder that radicalized Islam is a constant threat.


  • **FILE** Sen. Rand Paul, Kentucky Republican, talks to reporters on Capitol Hill in Washington on March 7, 2013. (Associated Press)

    Rand Paul: Stop immigration bill until we understand Boston

    Sen. Rand Paul said Monday that the immigration reform debate should be halted until Congress first understands what went wrong in Boston, where two brothers who came to the U.S. legally under the asylum program have been accused of the deadly bombings at last week's marathon.


  • **FILE** Hundreds of people attend the National Rally for Citizenship on the west lawn of the U.S. Capitol in Washington on April 10, 2013, to call for immigration reform. (Andrew Harnik/The Washington Times)

    EDITORIAL: Why the rush on immigration reform?

    "Behind Closed Doors" was a Grammy-winning country hit for Charlie Rich in the 1970s, describing a good time where no one could see, but it's a terrible way to write laws, particularly laws as complex and controversial as immigration reform.


  • **FILE** Illegal immigrants prepare to enter a bus after being processed at the U.S. Border Patrol's Tucson Sector headquarters on Aug. 9, 2012, in Tucson, Ariz. (Associated Press)

    Illegal border crossings leap ahead of immigration bill

    Apprehensions of illegal immigrants are up 13 percent this year, the chief of the U.S. Border Patrol testified to Congress on Wednesday as lawmakers continued to bash the Obama administration for failing to have a way of measuring how secure the borders are.


  • Sen. Jeff Sessions (left), Alabama Republican, and Sen. Patrick J. Leahy, Vermont Democrat

    Patrick Leahy warns Jeff Sessions: Don't mess with immigration talks

    Sen. Patrick J. Leahy, the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee and a leading voice in the immigration reform debate, sent a strong word of caution Sen. Jeff Sessions' way: Don't "discredit the process" of scheduled Senate talks.


  • ** FILE ** In this Oct, 25, 2012, photo, Seattle Police officer Jim Britt demonstrates the unmanned aerial vehicle during an informational meeting where the police attempted answer questions about their drone program at the Garfield Community Center in Seattle. The mayor of Seattle is ending the police department's drone program after local residents protested, Thursday, Feb. 7, 2013. (AP Photo/The Seattle Times, Colin Diltz)

    Many questions, few answers as Capitol Hill weighs drones, privacy

    Could police arm drones with tear gas or pepper spray? Will unmanned aircraft someday conduct 24-hour surveillance on American streets? Which arm of the federal government should take the lead in restricting what drones can do and what information they can collect?


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