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.
2,544 Articles
Espionage Porn and Democratic Platitudes: A Response to Rahul Sagar
I don’t have much to say in reply to Rahul Sagar’s thoughtful response to my January 23 post, “Does Espionage Porn Make Us Stronger?” Much of that is because,…
Information Cascades and Intelligence Oversight
Sen. Blumenthal opened a recent surveillance oversight hearing by hammering an important point from the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board’s thorough report on the…
The al Iraqi Case and the Future of Military Commissions
This morning’s New York Times features a story by Charlie Savage about yesterday’s addition of a conspiracy charge to the pending military commission proceeding at…
Benghazi Oversight: What New Congressional Reports Tell Us about Committee Clients
This week, the House Armed Services Committee (HASC) issued a 31-page majority interim report on the September 11-12, 2012 attack on U.S. facilities in Benghazi, Libya. The HASC…
Members of the PCLOB Testifying Before the Senate Judiciary Committee
This morning at 10:00am, the Senate Judiciary Committee is holding a hearing on “The Report of the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board on Reforms to the Section…
Eight Questions PCLOB Should Ask About Section 702
Tomorrow, all five members of the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (PCLOB) will testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee about their recent report concluding that…
Lethal Targeting of US Citizens: AP Report Raises More Questions Than Answers
In a highly provocative piece this morning, Kimberly Dozier writes that the Obama administration is weighing another drone strike against a U.S. citizen. That is obviously a…
Two Developments re Section 215: (i) Changes to the Section 215 Program and (ii) Program’s Scope is Currently More Limited than Originally Thought
In his speech last month on the U.S. signals intelligence programs, President Obama “directed the Attorney General to work with the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court…
House Committee on Foreign Affairs Hearing on “Al-Qaeda’s Resurgence in Iraq”
Yesterday was a busy day on Capitol Hill for those interested in various facets of U.S. national security policy with several hearings relevant to Just Security readers. Today…
“Associated Forces” has a legal meaning . . . but it’s not “every group that calls itself al Qaeda”
Daphne reports that at a House Armed Services hearing today, Christopher Swift of the UVa Center for National Security Law emphasized that “the United States has to stop…
“Associated Forces” Has No Legal or Strategic Meaning
Today was national security day in Congress, with three simultaneous hearings on the terrorist threat and how best to fight it. I watched the House Armed Services Committee hearing…
Can Congress Protect Digital Privacy from NSA Spying?
[Editor’s Note: The House Judiciary Committee hearing can be viewed live on C-SPAN.org] Today, the House Judiciary Committee will conduct a hearing on recommendations to…