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Seen, Heard & Whispered: Birthright citizenship; Pulte and FISA; Ja Rule and Don Jr.'s club

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Articles by Stephen Dinan

House Judiciary Committee member Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio questions Deputy Attorney General James Cole on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2014, during the committee's hearing on Examining Recommendations to Reform FISA Authorities. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen)

Justice Dept. denies briefing Obama on IRS targeting

President Obama didn't check with the Justice Department before saying there was no corruption at the IRS, the department's deputy told Congress on Tuesday, ahead of several potential showdowns on Capitol Hill this week.

February 4, 2014
**FILE** House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio pauses while meeting with reporters on Capitol Hill in Washington on Jan. 16, 2014. (Associated Press)

Boehner says immigration still iffy for 2014

House Speaker John A. Boehner said Tuesday that he still hasn't decided whether to move forward with immigration bills this year, saying the timing remains a hot topic within the GOP.

February 4, 2014
President Barack Obama makes the thumbs up sign as he ends a speech about his ConnetED goal of connecting 99% of students to next generation broadband and wireless technology within five years, Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2014, at Buck Lodge Middle School in Adelphi, Md. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Obamacare will push 2 million workers out of labor market: CBO

Obamacare will push the equivalent of about 2 million workers out of the labor market by 2017 as employees decide either to work fewer hours or drop out altogether, according to the latest estimates Tuesday from the Congressional Budget Office.

February 4, 2014
Some of President Obama's staunchest supporters are wondering why he left their causes off his executive to-do list. (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Obama’s promise of executive action leads to disappointment

President Obama may have raised expectations too high when he vowed last week to take unilateral action to get around Congress — since his speech he has been flooded with requests and complaints from some of his staunchest supporters wondering why he left their issues out of his executive to-do list.

February 3, 2014
John Koskinen, President Barack Obama's choice to head the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2013, before the Senate Finance Committee hearing on his nomination. Koskinen, 74, is a retired corporate and government official with experience managing numerous organizations in crisis. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Embattled IRS plans employee bonuses for 2013 work

The IRS's new commissioner said Monday he has decided to pay out millions of dollars in employee bonuses, reversing a decision by his predecessor, who canceled them amid the sequester budget cuts and other belt-tightening moves last year.

February 3, 2014
** FILE ** This Jan. 28, 2014, file photo shows House John Boehner of Ohio, accompanied by House Majority Leader Eric Cantor of Va. speaking at Republican National Committee headquarters in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)

House GOP wants legal status but no citizenship for illegal immigrants

House Republican leaders have ruled out a special pathway to citizenship but do support granting some form of legal status and work permits to most illegal immigrants, according to the broad set of principles GOP leaders released Thursday that pushed the issue back to the political forefront.

January 30, 2014
** FILE ** Illegal immigrants prepare to enter a bus after being processed at Tucson Sector U.S. Border Patrol Headquarters Thursday, Aug. 9, 2012, in Tucson, Ariz. New strategies being implemented by the U.S. government, including the halting of one-way flights back to the interior cities in Mexico, are in place to streamline processing and expedite a return to Mexico. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Immigration officials warn of amnesty ‘overload’

The officers who would be charged with approving millions of applications from illegal immigrants for legal status warned Congress this week that they can't handle the workload, and said the change would guarantee criminals and others would be approved to remain in the country.

January 30, 2014
On the day of President Barack Obama's State of the Union address, House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio, meets with reporters at Republican National Committee headquarters in Washington, Tuesday, Jan. 28, 2014, after a GOP strategy session. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

GOP offers to cooperate with Obama on limited agenda

Responding to President Obama's State of the Union challenge, House Republican leaders on Thursday offered the White House a list of areas where they believe they can cooperate this year on legislation — focused chiefly on jobs and energy.

January 30, 2014
Attorney General Eric Holder pauses while testifying on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2014, before the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing oversight hearing on the Justice Department. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

GOP wants key Justice Dept. lawyer to testify in IRS scandal probe

The House oversight committee has asked a lawyer who's helping run the criminal investigation into IRS targeting of tea party groups to testify to Congress next week, seeking to find out where the investigation stands and whether her political leanings have undermined the probe.

January 29, 2014
Attorney General Eric Holder listens on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2104, while testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee oversight hearing on the Justice Department. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Eric Holder: Criminal charges still possible in IRS scandal

Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. said Wednesday that the Justice Department could still bring criminal charges against IRS officials for targeting tea party groups, contradicting press reports that said investigators have already concluded no crime was committed.

January 29, 2014
Snow falls at the White House shortly after President Barack Obama returned from the U.S. Capitol where he made his State of the Union speech in Washington, Tuesday Jan. 28, 2014. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Obama’s SOTU speech leaves environmentalists feeling cold

Despite promising to do an end-run around Congress to fight global warming in his Tuesday speech, President Obama is still taking heat from environmental activists for not going further and attacking all fossil fuels.

January 29, 2014
** FILE ** President Obama, a former community organizer who understood the power of building collective action, decided to update the practice for the 21st century and announced the We the People project in 2011. (Associated Press)

White House’s ‘We the People’ petition site slows to a trickle

After a feverish postelection flurry of responses in late 2012, the White House has dramatically slowed down its answers to petitions the public has filed on President Obama's We the People website, leaving the project stumbling even as it turns into a forum for international communities to settle scores.

January 28, 2014
**FILE** Volunteers harvest hemp at a farm in Springfield, Colo., on Oct. 5, 2013, during the first known harvest of industrial hemp in the U.S. since the 1950s. America is one of hemp's fastest-growing markets, with imports largely coming from China and Canada. Most of that is hemp seed and hemp oil, which finds its way into granola bars, soaps, lotions and even cooking oil. (Associated Press)

Christmas tree fee, hemp support find way into farm bill

Tucked inside the massive new farm bill, which House Republican leaders are speeding to the floor, is a controversial 15-cent fee the government will collect on every Christmas tree cut in or imported into the U.S.

January 28, 2014