Stephen Dinan

Obama orders $100 million in office cuts

Acknowledging a "confidence gap" with taxpayers, President Obama ordered his Cabinet on Monday to cut a total of $100 million from office expenses over the next 90 days - but his effort was immediately ridiculed by Republicans who said it was a pittance.

April 21, 2009

Obama tells Cabinet to cut $100 million more

Acknowledging a "confidence gap" with taxpayers, President Obama on Monday ordered his Cabinet to find $100 million in total spending cuts over the next 90 days as a signal they are serious about spending money wisely.

April 20, 2009

Obama calls Chavez meetings good steps

President Obama said that his meetings with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez were good steps and that positive Cuban and Venezuelan responses were repudiations of the Bush administration's approach to diplomacy.

April 20, 2009

Obama: Cuban, Venezuelan outreach was ‘positive’

President Obama said Sunday that the outreaches this week from Cuba and Venezuela were "positive signs" and said his interaction with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez was a good step that can only help.

April 20, 2009

Chavez gift book No. 2 on Amazon

The English translation of the book Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez gave to President Obama on Saturday has become a sensational seller on the Internet, jumping to No. 2 on Amazon's sales list by noon Sunday, after being No. 54,295 just a day earlier.

April 19, 2009

From Chavez, literary criticism

In a revealing back and forth, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez sought out President Obama at a joint meeting Saturday to give him a book attacking capitalism and American intervention.

April 19, 2009

Obama, Chavez share book, pleasantries

Continuing an interesting back-and-forth in U.S.-Latin American relations Saturday, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez gave President Obama a book attacking capitalism and American intervention in the Western Hemisphere.

April 18, 2009

U.S.-Cuba relations continuing to thaw

President Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro continued what has been a week-long easing of U.S.-Cuba relations, with Mr. Obama saying Friday he has seen positive signals from the island nation.

April 18, 2009

Obama blames U.S. guns in Mexico

Meeting face-to-face with Mexican President Felipe Calderon, President Obama on Thursday said the U.S. is to blame for much of Mexico's drug violence, and he set up a major congressional gun-control battle by calling on the Senate to ratify a treaty designed to track and cut the flow of guns to other countries.

April 17, 2009

Calderon presses Obama, U.S. on immigration

Mexican President Felipe Calderon called on the United States to pass an immigration bill as part of a new partnership between the two countries, even as he said Mexico welcomes U.S. business investment.

April 16, 2009

Calderon to press Obama on drug war

Mexican President Felipe Calderon, who plays host to President Obama in Mexico City Thursday, has become increasingly bold in blaming Americans for the plague of drugs, guns and corruption that is fueling his nation's vicious war with drug cartels.

April 16, 2009

Border czar to be named before Latin talks

Ahead of President Obama's trip this week to Mexico City, the administration will name a border czar to coordinate U.S. efforts to fight illegal immigration and handle the growing problems related to the drug war in northern Mexico.

April 15, 2009

Ethanol policies fuel food-price rise

Federal ethanol-fuel policies forced consumers to pay an extra 0.5 percent to 0.8 percent in increased food prices in 2008, and the government itself could end up paying nearly $1 billion more this year for food stamps because of ethanol use, according to a new government report.

April 9, 2009

Biden assumes role of enforcer, pushes budget

In just one night last week, Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. spent more time on the Senate floor cajoling senators than Dick Cheney did in his eight years as vice president.

April 8, 2009

Bush AIDS fight saved 1.1M, study says

Former President George W. Bush's international AIDS-fighting campaign has reduced by 10 percent the mortality rates in 15 targeted countries, primarily in Africa, and has saved 1.1 million lives, according to a study.

April 7, 2009

Senate keeps charitable deductions

The Senate on Thursday voted unanimously to preserve the full charitable-giving deduction in the tax code, rejecting yet another key part of President Obama's strategy for paying for the ambitious spending programs in his 2010 budget.

April 4, 2009

Senate won’t fast track cap-and-trade

In a strong vote Wednesday the Senate firmly rejected President Obama's plan to try to push through a carbon emissions cap-and-trade program through fast-track procedures, making clear that getting any bill done this year will be a struggle.

April 2, 2009

Rights groups fight Obama lobbyist rules

Saying President Obama has violated the Constitution, an unusual alliance of lobbyists, the American Civil Liberties Union and free-speech advocates on Tuesday demanded that the White House rescind new, unprecedented rules that bar lobbyists from calling or meeting with government employees when trying to tap stimulus money.

April 1, 2009

GM move now a tightrope for Obama

Having ousted the CEO of America's fourth-largest corporation this weekend, President Obama finds himself walking a tightrope between good stewardship and intrusive corporate boss.

March 31, 2009

Obama to sign lands bill before 5 days of comment

President Obama on Monday will sign the omnibus land conservation bill - yet again breaking his vow to allow five days for public comment before he affixes his signature to legislation.

March 30, 2009