Stephen Dinan

Territories snared in wage debate

Just three years after a Democrat-led Congress imposed the federal minimum wage on two U.S. territories in the Pacific, lawmakers last month halted the program in its tracks, acknowledging the move had sapped thousands of jobs from American Samoa and the commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.

October 18, 2010

FY ‘10 continued torrent of federal red ink

The federal deficit shrank slightly in fiscal year 2010, but on most other measures, it was a dark year for the government's fiscal health.

October 17, 2010

Budget deficit dropped slightly in fiscal 2010

The federal government ended fiscal year 2010 $1.294 trillion in the red, the Treasury Department said Friday — an improvement from last year's largest-ever annual deficit of $1.416 trillion, but still the second-largest hole in history.

October 15, 2010

Democrats say ‘tea partiers’ will help them

The "tea party" remains an unknown factor, with Democrats saying the movement will cost the GOP seats and Republicans saying it's part of an anti-establishment sentiment.

October 14, 2010

Raese won’t hide conservative views

John Raese would have filibustered both of President Obama's Supreme Court nominees, not only opposes the minimum wage but thinks it may be unconstitutional, and won't say whether Social Security and Medicare are constitutional but allows that they are here to stay.

October 13, 2010

‘Green’ red tape said to hinder Border Patrol

Environmental red tape has at times ensnared the U.S. Border Patrol's efforts to gain control of parts of the U.S.-Mexico border, according to a draft government report that found agents sometimes take a back seat to protecting endangered species in the Southwest's national parks and forests.

October 10, 2010

Obama vetoes bill on foreclosure documents

Even though the measure passed Congress without a single dissenting vote, President Obama this week spotted potentially nefarious side effects in an arcane bill to rewrite rules on notarized documents, issuing only the second veto of his presidency Thursday.

October 7, 2010

Government spending rises 9%

Basic government spending rose by 9 percent in fiscal 2010, driving the country to a $1.291 trillion deficit down $125 billion from 2009, but still the second-largest hole on record, the Congressional Budget Office said Thursday.

October 7, 2010

More criminal aliens deported last year

President Obama's new immigration enforcement strategy led to a record number of criminal aliens being deported last year, but removals of other illegal immigrants fell to the lowest rate since 2007, before the Bush administration began a crackdown.

October 6, 2010

Deportations of illegals falls short of goal

President Obama's new immigration enforcement strategy led to an all-time record number of criminal aliens being deported last year, but removals of other illegal immigrants fell to the lowest rate since 2007, before the Bush administration began its crackdown.

October 6, 2010

Obama use of foe’s tax records reviewed

A federal inspector general is looking into whether the Obama administration used confidential taxpayer information in an effort to attack a political opponent, Koch Industries.

October 5, 2010

Hispanics lose zeal to turn out vote for Dems

Hispanic voters still like Democrats more than Republicans, but they are much less enthusiastic about heading to the polls in this year's elections, according to a broad survey released Tuesday.

October 5, 2010

Congress hopefuls vow to be pork-free

The anti-pork brigade in Congress is poised to receive massive reinforcements next year, with nearly every non-incumbent GOP Senate candidate and hordes of House hopefuls swearing off earmarks themselves or even ready to consider an outright ban for all lawmakers.

October 4, 2010

Boehner calls for spending reform on Hill

Congress must fundamentally rethink the way it spends taxpayer money, including getting rid of massive multi-agency spending bills and forcing lawmakers who want to add new government programs to first cut an existing one, House Minority Leader John A. Boehner said Thursday.

September 30, 2010

Boehner: Congress’ spending needs complete reset

Congress must rethink the entire way it spends money, including getting rid of massive multiagency spending bills and forcing lawmakers to cut a program any time they want to start a new one, House Minority Leader John A. Boehner, Ohio Republican, said Thursday.

September 30, 2010

Lawmakers itching to leave Hill

Leaving taxpayers hanging and next year's spending bills undone, Congress is rushing to return to the campaign trail, pausing just long enough to agree on a stopgap bill to keep the government from shutting down after Thursday.

September 29, 2010

Democrats not getting jobs, tax bills done

The Democrats' agenda of jobs and tax cuts has begun to lose support within the party's own ranks, even as House and Senate members rush to finish their pre-election business and return home to seek votes for November's midterms.

September 28, 2010

Final Senate jobs bill fails

The jobs agenda put forth by Senate Democrats has begun to lose support within their own caucus, including a Tuesday vote in which a bipartisan filibuster defeated a bill to stop jobs from being shipped overseas.

September 28, 2010

Full tax-cut extension good in short term, worse in long run, CBO director says

A full, permanent extension of the Bush tax cuts could help the economy grow by nearly 2 percent more next year — and would be a bigger boost than just a partial extension, Congress' chief scorekeeper said Tuesday.

September 28, 2010

Tax-cuts vote unlikely until after elections

Democrats said Sunday they will put off until after the elections a vote on whether to extend the Bush tax cuts, leaving most taxpayers in limbo for months as to whether they'll face tax increases at the beginning of next year.

September 26, 2010