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Articles by Stephen Dinan

Vice President Joseph R. Biden takes the oath of office, administered by Supreme Court Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor at the residence of the vice president at the U.S. Naval Observatory as Jill Biden looks on, on Sunday, Jan. 20, 2012, in Washington. (AP Photo/New York Times, Josh Haner, Pool)

Biden officially sworn in to second term

Vice President Joseph R. Biden was officially sworn in to a second term of office Sunday morning at a small ceremony at the Naval Observatory, hours ahead of President Obama's expected inauguration in a similar ceremony at the White House.

January 20, 2013
"I think at the federal level and at the state level, get rid of these mandatory minimum sentences. Let judges act as judges and make up their own mind what should be done. The idea that we protect society by one size fits all, or the idea that we can do this kind of symbolism to make us safer — it just does not work in the real world," said Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick J. Leahy of Vermont, the senior Democrat in the Senate. (Associated Press)

Leahy: Abolish mandatory minimum sentences

The longest-serving Democrat in the Senate on Wednesday called for scrapping mandatory minimum sentences at both the federal and state levels, and said he wants Congress to take a critical look at the way U.S. law enforcement agencies use drones.

January 16, 2013
**FILE** President Obama, accompanied by Vice President Joseph R. Biden and children who wrote the president about gun violence following last month's shooting at an elementary school in Newtown, Conn., signs executive orders to reduce gun violence on Wednesday, Jan. 16, 2013, in the South Court Auditorium at the White House complex in Washington. From left are Mr. Biden; Hinna Zeejah, 8; Nadia Zeejah, Hinna’s mother; Taejah Goode, 10; Kimberly Graves, Taejah’s mother; Julia Stokes, 11; Dr. Theophil Stokes, Julia’s father; and Grant Fritz, 8. (Associated Press)

Obama using gun issue to advance health law

President Obama is using the national debate over gun violence to push for further action on his health care law, including insisting on the kind of mental health coverage states must provide under their Medicaid programs.

January 16, 2013
** FILE ** Sen. Patrick J. Leahy, Vermont Democrat (Associated Press)

Top Senate Democrat warns against police use of drones

The senior Democrat in the Senate on Wednesday called for scrapping mandatory minimum sentences at both the federal and state levels and said he wants Congress to take a critical look at the way police agencies in the United States are using drones.

January 16, 2013
Rep. Harold Rogers (Associated Press)

Sandy funding passes House; GOP is denied cost offsets

The House on Tuesday approved $50 billion in emergency funds for Superstorm Sandy relief, rejecting conservatives' plea to offset the spending with cuts as most lawmakers said worries about the deficit need to take a back seat when natural disasters strike.

January 15, 2013
**FILE** House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (Associated Press/The Roanoke Times, Stephanie Klein-Davis)

Congress has a Constitution problem — many don’t understand document

Each of them takes an oath to defend the Constitution, but many House lawmakers either don't understand the founding document or don't take its precepts seriously, according to an analysis by The Washington Times that studied the constitutional backing that representatives submitted for each of the more than 3,000 bills they introduced in 2011.

January 14, 2013

GOP recalls Obama, Biden opposed debt-limit hikes

President Obama's vow not to negotiate on the debt limit this year is a stark reversal for an administration whose two top officials both have a history of balking at debt hikes.

January 14, 2013
** FILE ** A Marine sentry stands guard at the White House on Tuesday, Jan. 1, 2013, an indication that President Obama is working in the West Wing. (Associated Press)

Obama puts debt deal on shoulders of lawmakers

The White House this weekend rejected Senate Democrats' push for President Obama to do an end run around Congress and raise the government's borrowing limit, saying he won't test the limits of executive power and that it's up to lawmakers to strike a deal.

January 12, 2013
**FILE** Shackled Mexican immigrants are directed by a guard for deportation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Harlingen, Texas, on May 25, 2010. (Associated Press)

Interceptions of immigrants stubbornly low

Despite massive increases in manpower, the U.S. Border Patrol is still intercepting only about 61 percent of would-be illegal immigrants along the U.S.-Mexico border, according to an audit that the investigative arm of Congress released Wednesday.

January 9, 2013