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.
4,603 Articles
Why the US Still Can’t Have It All: Biden’s National Security Strategy
The administration risks leaving the US overcommitted and overextended during a period of substantial shifts in the global balance of power.
Biden’s New Counterterrorism Policy Guidance Further Entrenches the Forever War
Biden's classified policy memorandum on counterterrorism drone strikes is just one more stepping stone in the long path of the forever war.
Assessing Biden’s New Policy Framework for Counterterrorism Direct Action
Biden's new counterterrorism framework is consistent with policy efforts to dial back the war on terror.
At the UN: New Moves to Speak Up for a Crimes Against Humanity Treaty
Amid a new resolution, delegations will need to send a crucial signal that protections for civilians are deepening -- not withering.
US Reinvests in Ethnic Oligarchy in Bosnia, Abandoning Support for Integration
President Biden and Secretary of State Blinken, together with allies, should rethink Western Balkans policy based on first principles.
People in Haiti Are Dying Because They Lack Water, Food, and Medical Treatment
Amid a gang-fueled economic and social meltdown, the US must help Haiti secure a government that takes responsibility for people's needs.
The United Nations in Hindsight: The Long and Winding Road to Security Council Reform
The UN Security Council's inability to address Russia's war against Ukraine has generated renewed interest in ideas for Security Council reform -- but "the path to reform may be…
In Weaponizing Asylum Seekers, DeSantis & Abbott Unwittingly Demonstrate the Possibility of Safe Transit Policies for Migrants
Ironically, the governors' actions show that the US could implement policies that better reflect the realities of migration - by treating migrants has human beings rather than…
Dealing with Putin’s Nuclear Blackmail
The risk cannot be dismissed, but giving in to his threats in his war on Ukraine would create a precedent that he likely would use elsewhere.
Bombing for Peace in Somalia? Time for a Different Approach
The path to peace in Somalia cannot rest on counterterrorism operations alone.
Was DeSantis Shipping Migrants to Martha’s Vineyard a Crime?
"Our analysis may be a useful guide – for criminal investigators, press, potential whistleblowers or witnesses, the public and other stakeholders."
Q&A on Russia-Backed Referendums in Eastern Ukraine and International Law
"There is simply no legal route through which a referendum can take place unilaterally without the consent of the territorial state."