Sean Lengell
Articles by Sean Lengell
Rep. Michael McCaul: Boston bombing suspects had help
The chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee says evidence suggests the two brothers accused of the Boston bombings had help planning the attack — and he says he has concerns about a possible "wider conspiracy" stretching overseas. Published April 28, 2013
Former S.C. Gov. Sanford ‘debates’ a fake Pelosi
As if the race for South Carolina's open House seat wasn't colorful enough already. Republican candidate Mark Sanford, who, while serving as the state's governor in 2009, was caught in a bizarre extramarital affair, held a "debate" Wednesday with a life-size poster-photo of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Published April 24, 2013
Maine Sen. King: Don’t blame the FBI for Boston bombings
Maine Sen. Angus King says the FBI is getting a bad rap on its investigation off the Boston bombings, saying it doesn't appear the agency mishandled an earlier inquiry of suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev after Russian officials warned he could be dangerous. Published April 24, 2013
Homeland Security chair: Too early to say Boston bombing suspects acted alone
The chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee says it's "way too premature" to conclude the Boston Marathon bombing suspects acted without foreign help. Published April 24, 2013
Leaks hurt gun control bill, Sen. Pat Toomey says
Sen. Pat Toomey, one of the main architects of the failed Senate legislation to expand gun background checks, blamed misinformation for helping sink the bill. Published April 24, 2013
Charges dropped against suspect in ricin mailings
Authorities have dropped charges against a Mississippi man accused of sending letters laced with the poison ricin to President Obama, a U.S. senator and a judge, while FBI agents searched another man's house in connection with the case. Published April 23, 2013
Montana Sen. Max Baucus won’t seek re-election
Montana Sen. Max Baucus said Tuesday he won't seek a seventh term next year, saying he wants to spend the next year and a half on Capitol Hill focused on serving his constituents and chairing the powerful Senate Finance Committee without the distraction of running for re-election. Published April 23, 2013
Graham: Boston bomb augurs more attacks
Sen. Lindsey Graham said Monday that the Boston Marathon bombing provides Congress with a "good case study" into whether law enforcement officials need to be equipped with more tools to monitor people suspected of having ties to radical Islam. Published April 22, 2013
Bombing suspect an ‘enemy combatant,’ GOP lawmakers say
A handful of Republicans on Capitol Hill on Monday ramped up their push to have Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev denied a defense attorney and treated as an "enemy combatant" in the name of national security. Published April 22, 2013
Boston police chief praises multi-agency bombing probe, ‘flawless’ coordination
Boston Police Commissioner Edward Davis called the cooperation and coordination between his department, state police and the FBI in pursuing the Boston bombing suspects "flawless." Published April 22, 2013
Mission Impossible? Manchin aims to make NRA members allies on background checks
One of the main architects of a gun-control bill that failed in the Senate this week said Friday he will continuing selling his plan on and off Capitol Hill and remains optimistic it one day will become law. Published April 19, 2013
Mississippi man charged in ricin-tainted mailings to Obama, senator
Federal authorities charged a Mississippi man on Thursday with threatening to harm President Obama and a U.S. senator, saying he is the person who tried to send letters laced with the poison ricin to the White House and Capitol Hill. Published April 18, 2013
Suspicious letter sent to Senate office false alarm
Michigan Sen. Carl Levin said tests on suspicious letter sent to one of his state offices show no signs it was contaminated with poison. Published April 18, 2013
FBI arrests Mississippi man in ricin-tainted mailings to Obama, senator
The FBI said late Wednesday that it had arrested a Mississippi man accused of sending letters tested positive for the poison ricin to President Obama, a U.S. senator and a Mississippi justice official. Published April 17, 2013
Spending cuts alone won’t save economy, Treasury head says
Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew warned Congress on Tuesday against taking drastic austerity measures to lower the nation's ballooning debt, saying the federal government also must spend money on job growth-related programs for the economy to fully recover. Published April 16, 2013
Man stopped at Reagan airport with loaded gun
Security officers at Reagan Washington National Airport stopped a Virginia man from boarding a plane Friday after authorities discovered he was carrying a loaded gun. Published April 15, 2013
Obama’s Labor pick Thomas Perez abused power, GOP lawmakers say
Republicans have ramped up attacks on President Obama's pick to head the Labor Department, releasing a scathing report that says Thomas E. Perez abused his power and negotiated a dubious deal while serving as head of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division. Published April 15, 2013
GOP hoping to hold National Labor Relations Board in limbo
While the Senate's Democratic rulers will ignore a Republican bill passed by the House last week aimed at conditionally shuttering the National Labor Relations Board, the upper chamber's GOP minority is determined to keep the panel in limbo until a dispute over President Obama's "recess appointments" is resolved. Published April 12, 2013
English soccer bodies shun Thatcher tribute
A move by soccer's ruling bodies in England not to order clubs to observe a moment of silence for the late British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher at matches this weekend has some in the country crying foul. Published April 10, 2013
Blind dissident says U.S. can’t let China keep lying
Blind Chinese dissident Chen Guangcheng, who was at the heart of a major diplomatic tug-of-war between Beijing and Washington a year ago, on Tuesday accused the Chinese government of breaking a promise not to harm his family. Published April 9, 2013