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.
4,605 Articles
Trump’s New Drone Strike Policy: What’s Any Different? Why It Matters
[Editor’s note: this article was originally published on September 21, 2017 at 9:50 PM] After months of continued tough talk and recent assurances that the United States…
Autonomous Weapon Systems and the Decision to Kill
The decision to kill other humans lies at the heart of concerns over Autonomous Weapon Systems (AWS). Human judgment regarding whether lives will be taken and objects destroyed…
A Careless Attack on the UN’s Commission of Inquiry on Syria
Over on Lawfare, Lt. Col. Shane Reeves and Lt. Col. Ward Narramore have published a critique of the latest report of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the…
Episode 37 of the National Security Law Podcast: Enemy Combatants, Agents of Foreign Powers
In this week’s episode, Bobby Chesney and I explore three big national security law developments from the past few days. First is that the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court…
The Cobb-Dowd BLT Summit Heard ’Round the World
On Sunday, Peter Baker and Kenneth Vogel of the New York Times reported on strains within the White House Counsel’s Office about strategy in responding to the Special Counsel…
How Facebook Could Crack the Trump-Russia Case
Facebook should be treated like a crime scene. The social media company likely has troves of data that could provide critical leads for the investigation into possible collusion…
Smoking Gun Videos Emerge: US Citizen, Libyan Warlord Haftar Ordering War Crimes
The International Criminal Court very recently issued an arrest warrant for a militia leader in Libya which should catch the attention of U.S. policymakers, diplomats and prosecutors…
Why Trump Should Support the UN, Even in the Era of “America First”
Tomorrow, President Trump will address the United Nations for the first time in what is sure to be a spectacle of high-drama. Trump and his administration have made no secret of…
Why Congress Can’t Ignore the Health Impact of DACA
Nearly 700,000 young immigrants will spend the next six months in limbo, waiting to see whether the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which allowed them to…
We Need to Know More About Government Searches of Travelers’ Electronic Devices
Relying on directives from the George W. Bush administration, U.S. border patrol and immigration officers have been subjecting travelers crossing U.S. borders to intrusive searches…
Episode 36 of the National Security Law Podcast: NSA General Counsel Glenn Gerstell on Section 702
We have a special treat in this off-cycle episode! National Security Agency General Counsel Glenn Gerstell is in Austin to speak to our students here at UT, and (no doubt against…
Climate Change and Arctic Security: Five Key Questions Impacting the Future of Arctic Governance
The day-to-day news cycle focuses on critically important national security issues, such as North Korea saber rattling, the ongoing Russia investigation, or whatever else happens…