Stephen Dinan

Trump can keep National Guard troops in D.C., appeals court says

A federal appeals court gave President Trump permission to keep National Guard troops deployed to the streets of Washington for the foreseeable future, saying presidents have unique powers when it comes to the capital city.

December 17, 2025

Federal judge seems unconvinced that White House should stop ballroom construction

A federal judge warned the administration against building President Trump's new White House ballroom just yet, but said Tuesday he's inclined to let the contractors continue below-ground work to clear and prepare the space.

December 16, 2025

Trump expands travel ban to new countries

President Trump added new countries to his general travel ban on Tuesday and added restrictions to some travel from other nations, saying the country conditions make it too dangerous to allow unfettered admission.

December 16, 2025

IRS law enforcement expanded reach in 2025: Helped ICE, policed D.C. streets

Nearly a century ago, the IRS' criminal investigators built the case that landed Al Capone behind bars for tax evasion.

December 16, 2025

Secret Service says halting ballroom poses security risk; historic trust seeks to stop construction

Stopping President Trump's plans for a ballroom on the White House could disrupt the president's security, the Secret Service told a federal judge, but officials promised more transparency and approvals before construction gets too far along.

December 15, 2025

DOJ battles judge to keep Kilmar Abrego Garcia in jail

The Trump administration is once again battling to keep Kilmar Abrego Garcia in detention, telling a federal judge to butt out of what the government says are core executive branch determinations about whether an illegal immigrant needs to be kept in custody while awaiting deportation.

December 15, 2025

Dead people, criminals, ‘Elvis Presley’ among sponsor applicants for Biden migrant parole programs

Elvis Presley may have died in 1977, but somehow he was among the people who applied to sponsor migrant "parolees" under the Biden administration, according to a new government audit that excoriated the Department of Homeland Security for how it handled the now-defunct parole programs.

December 14, 2025

Court pauses Judge Boasberg’s criminal contempt pursuit of Trump officials

A federal appeals court paused Judge James Boasberg's plans to have hearings next week to see if he should hold Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem in criminal contempt, with the judges saying they need more time to figure things out.

December 12, 2025

DOJ tries to block Boasberg’s contempt hearings against the Trump administration

The Trump administration rushed to a federal appeals court Friday asking judges to head off Judge James Boasberg's investigation into whether Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem should face a criminal contempt of court investigation over controversial deportation flights.

December 12, 2025

New York gave illegal driver’s licenses to foreign truck drivers: Feds

New York has intentionally been giving out truck driver's licenses to illegal immigrants in violation of federal rules, the Transportation Department said Friday, adding that unless the state fixes things it will be stripped of tens of millions of dollars in highway money.

December 12, 2025

18,000 confirmed and suspected terrorists entered U.S. under Biden

The government has identified 18,000 known or suspected terrorists who reached the U.S. during the Biden administration, senior officials told Congress on Thursday.

December 11, 2025

Democratic Rep. Bennie Thompson calls National Guard killing ‘unfortunate accident’

A senior House Democrat on Thursday called the shooting that took the life of a National Guard soldier an "unfortunate accident" and an "unfortunate situation."

December 11, 2025

Court orders DHS to release illegal immigrant Kilmar Abrego Garcia

A federal judge ordered the Trump administration on Thursday to "immediately" release Kilmar Abrego Garcia, ruling that the migrant's detention violates his rights.

December 11, 2025

Trump’s tariffs spur government’s improving deficit

The deficit has ticked down in the new fiscal year, and analysts said there's one obvious reason for the improvement: President Trump's tariffs.

December 10, 2025

Environmentalists sue to erase Trump’s ‘bloated’ face from appearing on national parks pass

An environmental group filed a lawsuit Wednesday asking a judge to stop the government from putting President Trump's face on a new national parks and monuments pass, saying the country doesn't want to see his "bloated, fragile, attention-seeking" headshot.

December 10, 2025

Is IQ of 72 too low to dodge death penalty? Supreme Court wrestles with cutoff

The Supreme Court struggled Wednesday to determine when someone is too mentally disabled to be executed for crimes, with the justices pondering when IQ tests or more subjective yardsticks are sufficient methods to determine intellectual ability.

December 10, 2025

Judge orders Trump to stop using California’s National Guard

A federal judge accused President Trump on Wednesday of using National Guard troops to create a "national police force" and ordered him to relinquish control of the California troops he's commandeered.

December 10, 2025

Appeals court rules in favor of Pentagon’s limits on transgender troops

A federal appeals court gave a boost Tuesday to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's limits on transgender troops, saying that a lower court that tried to block him didn't show enough deference to his decision-making.

December 9, 2025

Supreme Court grapples with limits on campaign spending by political party committees

Supreme Court justices grappled Tuesday with whether to topple another domino in campaign finance restrictions -- this one a limit on political party committees' ability to coordinate with individual candidates on how to spend money.

December 9, 2025

Senate report details 22 Americans caught in crosshairs of Trump’s mass deportation sweep

A report from Senate Democrats accuses Homeland Security of sweeping Americans up in its push to deport illegal immigrants, including some detained for more than a day, seemingly in defiance of Supreme Court guidance this year.

December 9, 2025