Democracy & Rule of Law
Just Security’s expert authors provide analysis on threats and challenges to democracy and the rule of law in the United States and globally. Coverage includes analysis of the separation of powers, good governance, democratic backsliding, authoritarianism, judicial independence, freedom of the press and association, and accountability for rule of law violations.
3,181 Articles
From Sweeping Punishment to Real Justice in Countering Terrorism
A study led by the United Nations University that examined punitive efforts in Iraq, Nigeria, and Somalia shows that too often, nonviolent associates of terror groups who may have…
Post-9/11 Generation Reaches Enlistment Age in Unmoored ‘War on Terror’
Human Rights First International Legal Counsel Rita Siemion says it's long past time to ensure that war-based authorities are used only when specifically authorized by Congress…
Sessions’ Recusal and Rosenstein’s Appointment of a Special Counsel—Both Were Legally Required
President Donald Trump made 5,001 false or misleading claims, as of Sept. 12, 2018, according to a running tally kept by the Washington Post. This included an astonishing 79 such…
Trump’s Ability to Classify Mueller Report Is Greater Threat Than Executive Privilege
The prospect of the President invoking Executive Privilege to keep the Special Counsel's report secret has received plenty of attention. Less well-known is this: there are no restrictions…
Executive Privilege and the Public Interest: Why the President Can’t Block Release of the Mueller Report
For more than a year, President Donald Trump’s lawyers have bragged about his “unprecedented” level of cooperation with Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation,…
Civilian Control of the Military During an Age of Trump and “Administrative Coups”
Since President Donald Trump’s election, concerns about the health of civilian control of the military and civil-military relations have garnered considerable media attention.…
Trump Declassifying Page, Ohr Records Will Have Broader Effects
President Donald Trump plans to declassify documents as early as this week about the FBI’s surveillance of campaign advisor Carter Page pursuant to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance…
Rudy’s Red Herring: Mueller’s Final Report and Executive Privilege
"It’s time to focus on where the real threat to Mueller’s report reaching the public may arise. The assertion of executive privilege is not it."
Trump’s Disrespect for the Rule of Law Spreads
Trump's disrespect for the rule of law has spread and is now poised to threaten the president himself.
In Defense of NYT’s Anonymous: Government “Stewardship” as a Guard Against Threats to Democratic Order
“If men were angels, no government would be necessary. If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary.” – The Federalist…
Norms Watch: Damage to Democracy and Rule of Law in August 2018
Welcome to the latest installment of Norms Watch, our series tracking both the flouting of democratic norms by the Trump administration and the erosion of those norms in reactions…
Judge Kavanaugh’s Testimony on His Constitutional View of Presidential Immunity is Misleading—and It Also Clinches the Case for Recusal
It could not now be clearer that as a result of his writings and public statements, Judge Kavanaugh cannot meet his own stated test of “open-mindedness.”