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
The President Resuscitates the Entry Ban: Where Should the Court Go From Here?
Section 2(c) of Executive Order 13780, suspending entry into the United States of all nationals of Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen, died of natural causes at 12:01…
The Other Person in the Room with Comey and Sessions
During all of the intense debate over the testimony of Attorney General Jeff Sessions, perhaps the most important statement by Sessions has gone largely overlooked. During…
The Loretta Lynch “Matter” Matter Matters, But it Shouldn’t
President Donald Trump took to Twitter Tuesday morning to condemn former Attorney General Loretta Lynch for requesting special treatment for Hillary Clinton during the 2016 presidential…
The Evolving Testimony of a Strangely Incurious Attorney General
Parsing the testimony of Attorney General Jeff Sessions regarding a critical conversation that he had with FBI Director James Comey reveals an important evolution in the Attorney…
Highlights of Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ Hearing
Today’s hearing with Attorney General Jeff Sessions before the Senate Intelligence Committee included the following ten highlights: 1. Sessions refused to answer many questions…
Why Trump Can’t (Lawfully) Fire Mueller
There’s been a great deal of noise from some of the President’s confidants over the past 48 hours suggesting that he might (try to) remove Special Counsel Robert Mueller. …
Fatally Flawed Anti-Torture Assurances
An man detained by U.S. forces in Iraq in 2005 After September 11, the United States and other countries heavily relied on diplomatic assurances as counterterrorism tools to legally…
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…
Five (Not-So-Obvious) Questions that Att’y Gen. Jeff Sessions Should be Asked
There are many obvious questions that Senators and reporters should pose to Attorney General Jeff Sessions—such as asking him about his knowledge of the reasons the President…
Cutting To the Bone of American Leadership
The recent resignation of David Rank, a 27-year career Foreign Service officer who was serving as acting U.S. Ambassador to China, is just the latest U.S. diplomatic casualty of…
Is Att’y Gen. Jeff Sessions About to Commit Perjury?
Following James Comey’s hearing on Capitol Hill, the Department of Justice issued a statement which flatly contradicts something that Comey said in his testimony. It appears…
Parsing the White House Response to Comey’s Testimony
The most extraordinary thing to come out of the hearing the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence held Thursday may not be former FBI Director James Comey’s testimony,…