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.
4,711 Articles
U.S. Arms Sale to Saudis Spells Legal Trouble for State Department Officials
In December, the Obama administration suspended a large weapon sale to Saudi Arabia due to concerns about widespread civilian casualties from Saudi airstrikes in Yemen. The Trump…
Just Security’s Coverage of Immigration and Refugee Executive Order
I. Latest Coverage 1. Explainers and Information on Revised Executive Order of March 6, 2017 Just Security, EXCLUSIVE: Trump Administration Fact Sheets on New Executive Order…
Visas and Politics in the Age of Trump
It is no surprise that criticism of President Donald Trump’s second executive order on visas and refugee resettlement was so harsh. Because of the incompetent drafting and rollout…
Targeting Yemen and the Repeal of Obama Constraints
Over at the New York Times, Charlie Savage and Eric Schmitt have written an excellent article on the Trump Administration’s decision to declare three parts of Yemen “areas…
Whitewashing Guantánamo
President Trump has made no secret of his desire to continue–if not affirmatively re-invigorate–the detention of non-citizen terrorism suspects at Guantánamo. That’s…
Iraq Is Off the Travel Ban List, But Iraqis Most in Need Not Helped by Trump’s New Order
In its revised executive order, the Trump administration dropped Iraq from the list of Muslim-majority countries for whom travel to the United States is suspended for 90 days.…
Encryption Backdoors, Vault 7, and the Jurassic Park Rule of Internet Security
Surely without a hint of irony, just a day after WikiLeaks dumped a vault-load of documents detailing the Central Intelligence Agency’s use of hacking tools and software exploits,…
A Colleague’s Response to Finer and Malley on Obama’s Strategy Against Terrorism
The months since Donald Trump’s victory in the presidential election have been a time for soul searching among those of us who served in the Obama Administration. Did our work…
The “Travel Ban” Executive Order as Separation-of-Powers Test Case
The White House’s March 6 executive order “Protecting the Nation From Foreign Terrorist Entry Into The United States” (the March EO or the new EO) is a telling blend…
A Supplement to Nicholas Kristof’s Ten Dots Connecting Trump to Russia
Nicholas Kristof has a valuable column this morning, “Connecting Trump’s Dots to Russia,” in which he lists ten “crucial” pieces of information that may indicate that…
Hitting Iran Where It Doesn’t Hurt: Why U.S. Intervention in Yemen Will Backfire
It’s tempting to take last weekend’s attacks on al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) targets as evidence that the Trump administration is prioritizing narrow counterterrorism…
Why a Broad Definition of “Violence” in Cyber Conflict is Unwise and Legally Unsound
International Humanitarian Law (IHL, aka the Law of Armed Conflict) is not intended to outlaw conflict. It is meant to regulate conflict in order to reduce its impact on civilians…