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Articles by Stephen Dinan

One specialist on background checks said that if the Office of Personnel Management allowed investigators to troll online, they could have spotted troubling signs with Edward Snowden, the former government contractor who leaked details of many of the government's most secret spy programs. (Associated Press)

Rules that keep feds from trolling Facebook, Twitter could have led to Snowden, Alexis

Most businesses regularly "Google" job applicants to see whether any red flags appear, but federal agencies generally shun checking social media websites — giving up a tool, analysts say, that could be helpful in weeding out everything from disability and immigration fraud to unsavory people trying to gain top-secret security clearance.

March 16, 2014
Sens. Jack Reed, Rhode Island Democrat, (left) and Dean Heller, Nevada Republican, were working together on a bipartisan bill in last year to restore unemployment benefits that fell one vote short of overcoming a GOP-led filibuster. (Associated Press)

Senators reach deal on unemployment benefits

Senators said Thursday they have reached a deal on a bill to renew federal unemployment benefits for the long-term jobless, announcing a bipartisan agreement that appears likely to have enough votes to clear a filibuster.

March 13, 2014
A Cardinal is sprinkled with ashes by Pope Francis during the Ash Wednesday mass at the Santa Sabina Basilica in Rome, Wednesday, March 5, 2014. Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent, a solemn period of 40 days of prayer and self-denial leading up to Easter. (AP Photo/Max Rossi, Pool)

Boehner invites Pope Francis to address Congress

House Speaker John A. Boehner sent an open-ended invitation Thursday asking Pope Francis to address a joint meeting of Congress, in what would appear to be a first for a leader of the Roman Catholic Church.

March 13, 2014
FILE - In this Feb. 4, 2014 file photo, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nev. speaks on Capitol Hill in Washington. Democratic Senate candidates are gambling they can turn voters against two obscure billionaire brothers who are funding attacks on them and the president’s health care law. Democrats are denouncing Charles and David Koch two of world’s richest people. The pair’s political network is spending millions on TV ads hitting Democrats in North Carolina and several other states. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid says the Kochs are paying huge sums to try to “buy” elections and advance a self-serving agenda of low taxes and less regulation.  (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak, File)

Harry Reid: ‘I’m not afraid of the Koch brothers’

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid renewed his crusade against the Koch brothers Thursday, and demanded that Republicans disavow the two men who have spent tens of millions of dollars to back conservative causes.

March 13, 2014
** FILE ** Sen. Saxby Chambliss, Georgia Republican. (Associated Press photographs)

Sen. Saxby Chambliss urges caution in CIA-Senate clash

The top Republican on the Senate intelligence committee pushed back Wednesday against accusations that the CIA snooped through congressional computers, saying that the facts are still too murky to draw any firm conclusions and a special investigator may have to be enlisted to sort it all out.

March 12, 2014
Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson, testifying on the fiscal year 2015 budget Tuesday, said that instead of random deportations, the administration is prioritizing on illegal immigrants they think deserve deportation. (Associated Press)

Deportations come mostly from border, DHS chief says

Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson acknowledged Tuesday that his department's deportation numbers are now mostly made up of illegal immigrants caught at the border, not just those from the interior, which means they can't be compared one-to-one with deportations under President Bush or other prior administrations.

March 12, 2014
** FILE ** Sen. Dianne Feinstein (right), California Democrat and chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, meets with CIA Director-nominee John Brennan (left), currently assistant to the president for homeland security and counterterrorism, on Capitol Hill in Washington on Thursday, Jan. 31, 2013. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

Intelligence chairwoman accuses CIA of intimidation, snooping on Congress

In a stunning public accusation Tuesday, the chairwoman of the Senate intelligence committee said the CIA snooped through congressional computers and is trying to intimidate Congress into backing off a report looking into charges of torture during terrorist-linked interrogations.

March 11, 2014
House Budget Committee Chairman Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis. speaks at the Conservative Political Action Committee annual conference in National Harbor, Md., Thursday, March 6, 2014. Ryan said GOP leaders and conservative activists should "give each other the benefit of the doubt" in the debate over the party's future. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

CPAC 2014: Poll shows GOP discontent, Congress frustration

Last week's Conservative Political Action Conference did little to dispel the notion of a deep rift between grass-roots activists and national GOP leaders, with CPAC's three-day straw poll showing frustration with Congress and a growing discontent with "establishment" presidential candidates.

March 9, 2014
FILE - In this Oct. 2, 1012 file photo, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers and other law enforcement jurisdictions drive the roads near near Bisbee, Ariz. New Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson is reviewing the department’s use of force policies, a Homeland Security official said Friday. The official said Johnson has been reviewing the rules about when agents along the border can use their guns since he took office in December. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, file)

Border Patrol Chief: Agents can still shoot at rock throwers

U.S. Border Patrol agents can still use deadly force to respond to rock-throwing attacks along the border, even though they must take care in assessing whether their lives are in danger, Border Patrol Chief Michael J. Fisher said in a new directive Friday.

March 9, 2014
Customs and Border Protection Chief of the Border Patrol Michael Fisher testifies at a House Judiciary Committee on Credible Fear and Asylum. (James Tourtellotte/Customs and Border Protection)

Border Patrol policy still permits agents to shoot at rock-throwers

U.S. Border Patrol agents can still use deadly force in response to rock-throwing attacks along the border, even though they must take care in assessing whether their lives are in danger, Border Patrol Chief Michael J. Fisher said in a new directive Friday.

March 7, 2014