Stephen Dinan
Articles by Stephen Dinan
House Homeland Security chairman scolds DHS for missing Afghan vetting deadline
The House Homeland Security Committee whacked the Biden administration Friday for missing the deadline to turn over documents detailing how tens of thousands of Afghans were vetted before they were allowed to reach the U.S. during the 2021 airlift. Published June 9, 2023
House committee opens probe into DHS Secretary Mayorkas over ‘dereliction of duty’
The House Homeland Security Committee announced an investigation Thursday into Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas for "dereliction of duty," in what could be the first concrete steps toward impeachment. Published June 8, 2023
GOP probes use of air marshals, Secret Service at the border
House Republicans launched a probe Thursday into Homeland Security's move to shift some 1,400 department employees to the border last month, saying the department is risking national security by pulling air marshals and Secret Service agents from their regular duties to help process migrants. Published June 8, 2023
Supreme Court: Alabama violated Voting Rights Act by drawing only one Black congressional district
The Supreme Court on Thursday ordered Alabama to adopt a congressional map that includes two majority-Black districts, saying the current map violates the Voting Rights Act because it unfairly dilutes the power of the state's Black residents. Published June 8, 2023
Newsom seeks gun change in Constitution; convention calls come with risks
California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Thursday called for the country to adopt an amendment to the Constitution that would challenge the core of the Second Amendment by writing new gun controls into the government's founding document. Published June 8, 2023
Pandemic policy that won’t die: DHS keeps shorter border hours despite end of emergency
President Biden has declared the pandemic over, but some of the country's northern border crossings into Canada have been slow to get the word. Published June 7, 2023
Senior DHS official says border is not ‘a success’
Homeland Security's assistant secretary for the border said Tuesday that the chaos that's reigned on the U.S.-Mexico boundary has not been "a success," as he faced a grilling from congressional Republicans who said he's running a "shell game" to hide just how bad conditions are. Published June 6, 2023
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene says U.S. is ‘not a safe country’ for migrants
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene blasted the Biden administration for opening its doors to illegal immigrants fleeing poverty, violence or the effects of climate change, saying the U.S. isn't a safe country in those respects. Published June 6, 2023
DHS says border ‘is working as intended’ after Title 42
The Homeland Security Department said it has "repatriated" roughly 1,700 illegal immigrants per day since the end of Title 42, or less than 40% of the unauthorized migrants showing up at the southern border in recent weeks. Published June 6, 2023
DHS says nurse refused family’s requests for medical treatment; 8-year-old migrant died
Homeland Security is blaming contract medical personnel for bungling the handling of an 8-year-old migrant girl who died in Border Patrol custody last month. Published June 1, 2023
McCarthy credited for debt-ceiling win after leading House members through difficult bipartisan vote
In the face of their parties' loud opposition to the debt ceiling bill, House Republicans and Democrats cast their votes to pull the legislation across the finish line. Published June 1, 2023
Wuhan virus lab got more U.S. money than previously reported
The Wuhan lab at the center of speculation about the origins of the coronavirus received four different grants of money from the U.S. government over the past decade, according to new research released Wednesday. Published May 31, 2023
Border Patrol chief to retire amid border chaos
Border Patrol Chief Raul Ortiz will retire at the end of next month, leaving the agency after overseeing the most chaotic border in modern American history. Published May 30, 2023
Inspector general asks for more time, money to probe pandemic unemployment fraud
The Labor Department's inspector general said Tuesday it will soon run out of its infusion of pandemic cash and will have to trim its investigation into the fraudsters who stole tens of billions of dollars from the unemployment benefit system. Published May 30, 2023
Trump vows to end birthright citizenship through executive order
Former President Donald Trump vowed Tuesday to sign an executive order ending birthright citizenship if he makes it back to the White House. Published May 30, 2023
Confidently incorrect: For ChatGPT, the truth isn’t always out there
ChatGPT may be a modern marvel of computer engineering and a shockingly good practitioner of the English language -- but don't expect it to actually be correct. Published May 29, 2023
How did hundreds of noncitizens end up on Chicago’s voter rolls?
Hundreds of noncitizens have been kicked off Chicago's voter rolls after admitting they were never supposed to have been registered in the first place, according to a new study that blames the Motor Voter Act for how the names got added in the first place. Published May 29, 2023
Potty politics: Federal wildlife refuges ordered to build ‘all-gender’ bathrooms
The nation's wildlife refuges, already straining under a billion-dollar maintenance backlog, have just been ordered to build "all-gender" bathrooms for employees at every facility that doesn't already have single stalls. Published May 29, 2023
IRS worked overtime to probe Twitter Files journalist Matt Taibbi
The IRS really must have wanted to investigate Matt Taibbi, the Twitter Files journalist. Published May 24, 2023
Appeals court upholds school’s diversity policy that curtailed Asian American student admissions
A federal appeals court upheld the diversity policy at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science & Technology, ruling Tuesday that the plan survives constitutional scrutiny despite cutting Asian American admissions by 26%. Published May 23, 2023