Executive Branch

Just Security’s expert authors provide analysis of the U.S. executive branch related to national security, rights, and the rule of law. Analysis and informational resources focus on the executive branch’s powers and their limits, and the actions of the president, administrative agencies, and federal officials.

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4,605 Articles
A policeman stops US Actress Mia Farrow and Theary Seng, head of the Centre for Social Development, as they attempt to enter the Tuol Sleng Genocide museum in Phnom Penh, 20 January 2008. They hold white flowers and people with cameras crowd around them.

Cambodian Rights Activist and 55 Others Face Trial as Crackdown on Dissent Intensifies

Given the control that Prime Minister Hun Sen’s ruling party wields over the judiciary, their odds of getting a fair trial are slim.
A Honduran immigration detainee, his feet shackled and laces removed from his shoes by ICE, boards a deportation flight to San Pedro Sula, Honduras on February 28, 2013 in Mesa, Arizona.

Mass Deportations to Cameroon Undermine US Foreign Policy and Violate International Law

Trump’s immigration policy increasingly undermines U.S. foreign policy goals, as seen with the recent deportation of Cameroonian asylum-seekers.
Officials from the South Korean Central Election Management Committee and election observers count votes cast of Parliamentary election amid the coronavirus outbreak on April 15, 2020 in Seoul, South Korea. Everyone wears a mask properly over their mouth and nose.

COVID-19 and International Law Series: Human Rights Law – Civil and Political Rights

[Editor’s Note: This article is part of a Just Security series, COVID and International Law. All articles in the series can be found here.] States around the world have had…
Trump speaks to city officials and employees of Double Eagle Energy on the site of an active oil rig on July 29, 2020 in Midland, Texas. He does not wear a face mask.

Why a Self-Pardon Is Not Constitutional

The 2020 election results are in. Joseph R. Biden, Jr. is the President-Elect of the United States of America. Sometime before January 20, 2021, Donald Trump will recognize the…
Redacted text on a sheet of paper.

How a New Administration—and a New Congress—Can Fix Prepublication Review: A Roadmap for Reform

The new administration, and the new Congress, should act more decisively to reform this broken system.
Egyptian members of the press sit outside the headquarters of the journalists syndicate in Cairo on January 25, 2009 with their cameras on the ground, in protest against police interference in their work. Many hold images of police brutality.

How to Fight Truth Decay: Protect the Truth Tellers

What better way of protecting the truth than by offering a safe haven for journalists who risk their lives to inform us.
Members and supporters of The Washington Region Religious Campaign Against Torture hold a rally to demand Congressional action to stop torture on Capitol Hill March 10, 2008 in Washington, DC. A banner reads, “Torture is un-American.”

On Accountability and the Next Presidency, Starting With the Cabinet

To truly “Build Back Better,” as Biden promised, he must not nominate, appoint, or otherwise hire anyone for his administration who has seriously abused power.
ODNI seal and other intelligence sommunity seals in a line

Getting the T’s and C’s Right: The Lessons of Intelligence Reform

"We have been part of every iteration of the ODNI and have seen the highs and lows, the good and the bad, as the IC has remade itself. We have learned valuable—and painful—lessons..."
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Swiss President Alain Berset hold a joint press conference following various signing ceremonies in Bern on July 3, 2018.

Why Biden May Try to Return to Iran Nuclear Deal Before Renegotiating It

With only five months between President-Elect Biden’s inauguration and Iranian presidential elections in June, in which hardliners are likely to prevail, a clean U.S. return…
Letters reading, “Department of Justice” on the outside wall of the Justice Department building. Plants can be seen out of focus in front of the letters.

The Next Attorney General’s Allegiance Must Be to the Rule of Law

The key credentials of the next AG should be significant prosecutorial experience at the federal or state level and an abiding fidelity to the apolitical administration of justice.
Acting Defense Secretary Christopher C. Miller address media at the Pentagon, Washington, D.C. Nov. 17, 2020.

Not a Coup at DOD: How Acting Sec. Miller’s Reorganization May Improve Special Ops Oversight

"The key question is whether Miller’s move will actually increase civilian oversight of Special Operations Forces."
Transition Mali President Bah Ndaw without a face mask is seen with Malii Interim Vice President Colonel Assimi Goita, who wears a face, mask during his inauguration ceremony at the CICB (Centre International de Conferences de Bamako) in Bamako on September 25, 2020. Other soldiers with face masks sit and stand behind the two.

Mali: The “Good” Coup d’État?

Will the military, having violated democratic norms, work with a civilian-led government to bring the country back to rule of law and peaceful development?
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