Democracy & Rule of Law
Rule of Law
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When This Part is Over–America Post the Russia Investigation
At some point, Special Counsel Robert Mueller will complete his investigation. He could bring criminal charges, name other co-conspirators, comment on possible grounds for impeachment,…

The Office of Legal Counsel and Secret Law
In theory, it’s the province of the judiciary to say what the law is, but in practice this task often falls to the Office of Legal Counsel. This is because many important questions…

Hidden from the Public: The United Kingdom’s Drone Warfare
The use of armed drones by the United States, both within the conflict zones of Iraq and Syria, and further afield in Pakistan, Somalia, and Yemen, continues to be characterized…

Norms Watch: Democracy, the Trump Administration, and Reactions to It (June 23-June 30)
Editor’s Note: 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…

Norms Watch: Democracy, the Trump Administration, and Reactions to It (June 16-June 23)
Editor’s Note: 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…

U.S. Secrecy and Transparency in the Use of Lethal Force
Much of the news in the first few months of the Trump administration has been dominated by the Russia scandal, James Comey, and the President’s Twitter feed. Falling below…

Norms Watch: The 100 Days Edition (Apr. 21-28)
Editor’s Note: 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…

Letter to the Editor: The Whistleblower Protection Debate Continued
Recently, Andrew Bakaj and my former counsel, Mark Zaid, responded to my critique of their first piece on the state of national security whistleblower protections, stating We disagree,…

Making Sense of the Allegations that U.S. Military Struck a Mosque in Syria
There are now two very different competing pictures about whether the United States mistakenly struck a mosque in Syria on the night of March 16, 2017. On one view, based on three…

Letter to the Editor: Whistleblower Protections Are Getting Stronger
The March 2 article on Just Security by Patrick Eddington, titled “Whistleblower Retaliation: A Governmental Accountability and National Security Crisis,” certainly captures…

San Francisco Sets an Example of How to Resist Surveillance in Trump Era
The San Francisco Police Department (SFPD) suspended its participation in the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF) last month. JTTFs are counterterrorism-focused intelligence-sharing…
Ben Wittes and Quinta Jurecic on the “Oathless Presidency”—Questions raised by deep distrust in Trump
Just Security and the Center on Law and Security at NYU School of Law were delighted to host an event today for our friends from Lawfare, Ben Wittes and Quinta Jurecic, for a discussion…