Congress
Just Security’s expert authors offer analysis of U.S. Congress’ role in national security, foreign affairs, the rule of law, and rights. Coverage includes analysis and informational resources related to the legislative process, oversight and investigations of the executive branch, and major debates on the separation of powers and Congress’ constitutional role.
2,468 Articles
National Security-Related Congressional Hearings, November 14–18
Tuesday, November 15 10:30am – House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform – Oversight of the Secret Service (here) Wednesday, November 16 10:00am – House Committee…
Administrative Checks and Balances in the Trump Administration
Raise your hand if you went to bed Tuesday thanking James Madison for the gift of separation of powers. For years, scholars and pundits have resented that gift, railing against…
Assessing Trump’s Mandate—A Sober Analysis
Both supporters and opponents of Trump’s campaign want to know what kind of mandate the election results mean for his Presidency and for questions about the political capital…
Why I’m a Federal Courts Nerd (and You Should Be, Too)
In addition to the election, yesterday was also the first anniversary of the terribly untimely passing of my college mentor, Professor Nasser Hussain. And this past weekend, the…
State Dep’t Legal Adviser’s Answer to “Acute Question” on US Mil. Action against Al-Shabaab
On Friday, the Legal Adviser of the State Department, Brian Egan answered questions posed to him by New York Times journalist Charlie Savage on the current reach of Congress’s…
Is Throwing a Rock Through a Window “Terrorism”? Some Federal Prosecutors Think So
Image by Tomas Castelazo— Wikimedia Did you know that throwing a rock through the window of a Whole Foods could be punished as a federal crime of terrorism? An Assistant United…
The Terminology of War and the Consequences for Executive Power
Just Security has hosted a number of interesting exchanges over the last week concerning the international and political implications of identifying the existence of an armed conflict.…
5 and Counting: Russia Vetoes No-Fly-Zone in the Security Council
Over the weekend, Russia exercised its veto—again and unsurprisingly—to block a draft Security Council resolution (S/2016/846) that would have created a no-fly-zone over the…
Does JASTA Violate International Law?
The Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act (JASTA) is now the law of the United States, Congress having overridden President Obama’s veto of the bill. Among other things,…
Correcting the Record on Section 702: A Prerequisite for Meaningful Surveillance Reform, Part III
In our previous posts, we’ve argued that the NSA is collecting massive amounts of data about US citizens under conditions that have nothing to do with terrorism or national…
National Security-Related Congressional Hearings, September 27– October 3
Tuesday, September 27 10:00am – Senate Intelligence Committee – Robert Cardillo, Director, National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (here) 10:00am – Senate Committee…
Just Security’s Questions for Clinton and Trump
Given the importance of tonight’s prime-time debate between US presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, we’re again running our list of vital national…