Congressional Oversight
482 Articles
We Are Already in a State of Emergency
As Trump reissues his “lock her up” talk against Hillary Clinton and assaults the Justice Department, FBI, and media, the Brennan Center recently had a prescient meeting about…
How the Prospect of Indictment Could Impact the President’s Decision Making
Over the weekend, the New York Times revealed that former Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr concluded that it was “proper, constitutional, and legal for a federal grand…
US-UAE Partnership and Alleged Torture: Recommended Next Steps for the Administration and Congress
An important foreign military partner in our armed conflict against al-Qaida in Yemen—the United Arab Emirates—has faced a series of allegations that it is engaged in systematic…
About that Executive Privilege “Policy”: Congress Should Call the Bluff
During last week’s hearing of the Senate intelligence committee, Attorney General Jeff Sessions generated withering criticism by repeatedly refusing to answer Senators’ questions…
America’s AUMF Problem: Tomorrow’s Senate Hearing and a New Proposal from Eliot Engel
Events over the last several weeks show that not only is the AUMF issue not going away, but that Congress continues to inch closer to agreement. This Tuesday, the Senate Foreign…
Fight It with FOIA: How Congress Can Respond to White House Attempts to Block Congressional Oversight
The Trump White House took another step last week to weaken the checks and balances at the center of our constitutional system. According to Politico, President Donald Trump’s…
Never Waste A Good Crisis, FBI Edition
President Trump’s decision to summarily dismiss now-former FBI Director James Comey has sparked grave concerns in many quarters. The move has been described as a profoundly…
Q&A on Comey Firing, Russia Investigation and More
In the wake of President Donald Trump’s firing of FBI Director James Comey, there have been a handful of new revelations reported on the status of the investigations into…
Sally Yates, Russia Testimony & Executive Privilege in the Trump Era
This week has shed light on the Trump administration’s aggressive approach to executive privilege, but it has also cast doubt over President Donald Trump’s ability to assert…
National Security-Related Congressional Hearings, March 27-March 31
Tuesday, March 28 10:00am – House Committee on Armed Services – Military Assessment of Russian Activities and Security Challenges in Europe (here) 10:00am – House Committee…
Reforming Surveillance In the Age of Donald Trump
Above: An NSA site in Germany. On Wednesday, the Republican chair of the House Intelligence Committee, Devin Nunes (R-CA), gave a press conference in which he reported that Trump…
Incidental Collection Is Extremely Troubling, Regardless of Legality
A lot of ink has been spilled over statements by House Intelligence Committee Chairman Nunes that President Trump’s communications were incidentally collected pursuant to a surveillance…