Stephen Dinan

60 Plus leader: Senior ‘tsunami’ coming

After years of Republicans taking shots for proposing changes to Medicare and Social Security, the tables have turned and now "it's payback time," said James L. Martin, president of the 60 Plus Association.

November 6, 2009

Need for Republican unity seen as election lesson

"Tea party" activists say Tuesday's elections show that the Republican Party needs conservatives for victory, but the results suggest solidarity is more important: unified Republicans steamrolled in Virginia, while they fractured in New York and lost a House seat that they had held for more than a century.

November 5, 2009

Independents fuel GOP victories in Va., N.J.

The independent voters who powered President Obama and Democrats to victory in 2008 fled to Republicans in Tuesday's elections.

November 4, 2009

Economic downturn quiets labor unions

Labor peace has broken out across the country, and all it took was the nastiest recession since the end of World War II to spawn it.

November 3, 2009

D.C. wildfire funds rebuked, then restored

Congressional lawmakers Wednesday rebuked the Forest Service for spending stimulus forest firefighting money on D.C. green-jobs programs, but gave the city the money anyway.

October 29, 2009

Elections to test Obama’s public image

If elections are the ultimate beauty contest, President Obama next week will have his first major turn on the catwalk since his inauguration.

October 27, 2009

Vitter takes on census, immigrant rights groups

In his push to have the Census Bureau count the number of U.S. citizens, Sen. David Vitter, Louisiana Republican, is taking a very parochial approach with his colleagues: Your state could be the one to lose an extra seat in Congress.

October 27, 2009

In immigration war, environment is a neglected casualty

In the battle between Mexican immigrants, smugglers and drug cartels and the U.S. authorities charged with catching them, the innocent bystanders caught in the clash are the plants and animals of the borderlands.

October 25, 2009

White House: Policy ‘czars’ won’t testify

The White House has told Congress it will reject calls for many of President Obama's policy czars to testify before Congress - a decision senators said goes against the president's promises of transparency and openness and treads on Congress' constitutional mandate to investigate the administration's actions.

October 23, 2009

Senate OKs Gitmo transfers to U.S.

Congress on Tuesday passed the 2010 homeland security spending bill that gives President Obama the authority to transfer terrorism-suspect detainees to the United States for trial, though only after he submits a plan to Congress.

October 21, 2009

College football playoff boosted

Boosters of a college football playoff are vocal, but now they want to be too dangerous for politicians to ignore.

October 20, 2009

Political scientists fight to keep grants

The nation's political scientists are on the warpath, angry at efforts to cut off their federal funding and at taunts that they are getting taxpayer dollars to do what television talking heads do already.

October 14, 2009

Immigration activists call for reform

Hundreds of immigration activists staged a rally Tuesday on Capitol Hill, pressing for an overhaul of the nation's immigration laws to offer a pathway to citizenship for millions of illegal immigrants.

October 14, 2009

Hispanics mull boycotting 2010 census

Angered by President Obama's lack of success in legalizing illegal immigrants, some Hispanic activists are urging all Hispanics to boycott the 2010 census as a sign of displeasure.

October 12, 2009

Off-color remark caught by House mic

Yet another member of Congress has been tripped up by an open microphone, suggesting on the House floor where a colleague who disagreed with him should "stick" his viewpoint.

October 9, 2009

House ethics probe of Rangel expands

The House ethics committee on Thursday said it will look into why the nation's chief tax-law writer failed to report millions of dollars of income and business transactions on his financial disclosure forms, deepening the potential trouble for Rep. Charles B. Rangel.

October 9, 2009

Hate crime laws may extend to gays

Congress is poised to expand federal hate crimes laws to include sexual orientation, attaching it to a defense bill that could still run into trouble because it tests President Obama's will to cut spending.

October 9, 2009

Obama consults with GOP on Afghan war

After months of the silent treatment, President Obama on Tuesday reached out to congressional Republican leaders, hosting them and Democratic leaders at the White House to talk about a new strategy for Afghanistan.

October 7, 2009

Jobless benefits expire as health debate rages

Day after day, Ann McGilly has been calling the Senate and begging to know why her unemployment benefits have expired. The answer she keeps getting: Sorry, but they're busy right now fixing health care.

October 5, 2009

GOP bid to have generals testify nixed

The Senate on Thursday gave President Obama breathing room to plot a new Afghanistan strategy free from interference, rejecting efforts to pit him against his military commanders' advice.

October 2, 2009