Department of State
269 Articles
5 Best and 5 Worst Moments from the Week’s Confirmation Hearings on US National Security Issues
The week of confirmation hearings is over, and it’s time to take stock of what we have learned from the people the President-elect has nominated to lead his administration in…
Highlights from Tillerson Hearings on Nat’l Security and Int’l Law Issues
Secretary of State nominee, Rex Tillerson, who was until recently the CEO of ExxonMobil, faced the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Wednesday and fielded difficult questions…
Questions for Tillerson and Pompeo Confirmation Hearings — Updated
Confirmation hearings for President-elect Donald Trump’s Cabinet picks continue Wednesday. The Senate Judiciary Committee is holding its second day of hearings to examine…
President-elect Trump’s Picks Redefine “Two-Tiered System of Justice”
With his selection of retired Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn to serve as national security adviser, his continued consideration of retired Gen. David Petraeus for a possible administration…
The Economic Incentives for International Cybersecurity Coordination
On Friday, the President’s Commission on Enhancing National Cybersecurity published its final report, making 16 recommendations and identifying 53 action items to improve cybersecurity…
Anticipating Trump: Should Government Lawyers Stay or Go?
[Editors’ note: This post is the latest in Just Security’s series on the ethical and legal dilemmas of serving in the Trump administration. On Friday, Jon Michaels wrote…
Is the White House Mulling “Non-Diplomatic” Means to Stop Assad’s Attacks on Civilians?
The White House has no shortage of advice from outside the government (including from Just Security) and from within the administration on the best options for addressing the carnage…
US Policy on Transitional Justice
The US State Department and the Agency for International Development recently published a series of policy papers on the US approach to transitional justice. The United States…
The Obama Legal Team and the Lawfulness of Attacking Assad
Editor’s note: This post also appears on Charlie Savage’s blog Power Wars and Lawfare. Several prominent law professors who were formerly members of the Obama national security…
“Effective” Policy in Syria: Ambassador Robert Ford’s View
I wrote here yesterday in response to a post by Marty Lederman and Ashley Deeks about the recent, much-publicized dissent channel cable signed by 51 US diplomats. While my discussion…
Another Legal View of the Dissent Channel Cable on Syria
Since Vietnam, East Pakistan, and the Balkans, it has been a time-honored tradition that State Department officials who disagree with official policy may challenge it through the…
Would airstrikes against Assad be lawful and effective?: Reactions to the State “dissent cable”
Editor’s note: This post also appears on Lawfare. As you have probably read, 51 career foreign service officers in the State Department have written an internal memorandum recommending…