Trump administration first term
476 Articles
Keeping Track of Trump’s Conflicts of Interest [Updated Dec. 5]
Since the election, there has been a firehose of news: President-elect Donald Trump’s cabinet picks, rumors about Trump’s cabinet picks, a Neo-Nazi conference in Washington,…
Businesslike Government, Presidential Power, and the Erosion of the Civil Service
Immediately after the election, I wrote about the administrative separation of powers, specifically about how the rivalrous and contentious interplay of politically appointed agency…
10 Steps to Avoid Becoming a Tin Pot Kleptocracy (and safeguard our national security in the process)
The President-elect must make his tax returns public. The public at large will then know precisely the nature and form of his extensive business interests. The President-elect…
Why Trump’s Proposed Targeting of Muslims Would be Unconstitutional
As a candidate, Donald Trump notoriously called for a ban on the entrance of all Muslims, a database to track Muslims in the United States, for aggressive surveillance of “the…
Profiles of Trump’s National Security Picks: Flynn, Sessions and Pompeo
People make policy, so the saying goes. And on Friday, the Trump transition team unveiled three more names of men who would help President-elect Donald Trump make decisions, steer…
Will Trump Bring Back Torture? Not if He Learns from the Past and Follows the Law
Since Donald Trump’s election victory last week, attention has turned to figuring out which promises he will keep and which he will abandon. Regarding torture, there have been…
The Islamophobia Administration
POLITICO is reporting today that President-elect Donald Trump will likely nominate Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL) for attorney general and Rep. Mike Pompeo (R-KS) to be director…
Twitter’s Reaction to Stephen Bannon’s Appointment as Trump’s Chief Strategist
As Rebecca Hamilton noted in her post on Monday, commentators from across the political spectrum have denounced President-elect Donald Trump’s decision to appoint Stephen…
Recommendations to the New President on Countering WMD and Terrorism
After the U.S. Presidential election, we are entering a particularly vulnerable period as militant Islamists seek to test the new American president just as al-Qaeda (AQ) tested…
Trump’s Whistleblowers—Whether Limited Pardons for Manning and Snowden Makes Sense Now
Whatever you might have previously thought about the notion of President Barack Obama pardoning Chelsea Manning and Edward Snowden, the election of Donald Trump changes everything.…
Preventing Violent Extremism in 2017 and Beyond: Fading or Renewed UN and U.S. Leadership?
The current UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, and U.S. President Barack Obama will both leave office in January 2017, with at least one common legacy: a more comprehensive framework…
National Security Legal Advice in the New Administration
As the incoming Trump team grapples with the first days of its transition, it should not forget that the most urgent question regarding foreign affairs and national security law…