This is a great book and there's a lot to chew on here. By way of taking up Ben's opening volley, I have two general thoughts: 1) things may need some fixing, but not necessarily at the foundational level framed in the book, and 2) to the extent things do need fixing, international law has to be in the picture. The first point...
Let me start by thanking Chris for hosting this discussion, of which I'm delighted to be a part, and by thanking as well all of those who are participating. It really is a wonderful group, and I'm excited about the coming exchange. I wrote Law and the Long War out of a sense of frustration with the debate that has developed over...
We are pleased to host this week a discussion of Benjamin Wittes’ book Law and the Long War. Ben's book is a comprehensive analysis of how September 11th did--and did not--change National Security Law, the disparate group of legal mechanisms related to counter-terrorism. It is also about what the role of law in counter-terrorism should be. It is a book that is sure...
Noted with awe how cool David Cameron is: Mr Cameron gave Mr Obama a selection of CDs by the Smiths, Radiohead and Gorillaz. Snarky comments about what music McCain would give a young, hip Liberal leader from the UK welcome....
Ordinarily I do not blog on articles or discussions that seem to me entirely muddle-headed; life is too short. However. (Admittedly irritating digression: Life is particularly too short here at the Hoover Institution, Stanford, where I am spending a few weeks finishing a book manuscript on US-UN relations in the next administration, whosever it happens to be. The weather in Palo...
Just in case there is some blogger fairness doctrine I don't know about, I should mention that Obama seems to generally favor the ICC -- though he obviously has reservations about U.S. membership. Here is his clearest statement, made last October: Now that it is operational, we are learning more and more about how the ICC functions. The Court has pursued...
No, that's not a snarky question. He has consistently made comments that seem to indicate far more openness to the Court than the typical Republican. In 2002, he voted against the appalling American Service-Members Protection Act (aka "The Hague Invasion Act"). In 2005, he said “I want us in the ICC, but I’m not satisfied that there are enough safeguards.”...
. . . and I bet you are, too. In a recent move ostensibly aimed at shoring up its national identity, Germany has instituted a citizenship test. Naturalization applicants must correctly answer 17 out of 33 multiple-choice questions on German institutions and society. The questions are drawn from a catalogue of 310 questions that test-takers are given in advance. Try your luck here. For most,...
I just wanted to remind everyone that next week we will host a discussion of Benjamin Wittes' book Law And the Long War. Besides Ben, Bobby Chesney (Wake Forest), Geoff Corn (South Texas), Glenn Sulmasy (U.S. Coast Guard Academy), Steve Vladeck (American University), Marty Lederman (Georgetown) and possibly one or two others will be joining us for the book symposium. ...
Thailand and Cambodia have both mobilized troops to defend their claims to sovereignty over the Preah Vihear Temple, which is located on their border. The dispute has lingered for decades and was supposedly dealt with by this 1962 ICJ decision which awarded sovereignty to Cambodia. Apparently, Thailand is still not convinced and is prepared to occupy the temple by force (it is only...
I've been spending more time than is probably healthy over the last year researching the Compact Clause. Article 1, Section 10 of the Constitution prohibits U.S. states from entering into any "treaty, alliance or confederation" and bans them "without the consent of Congress" from entering "into any agreement or compact with another state, or with a foreign power." The Supreme Court...
I really wanted to ignore the Wall Street Journal editorial that Julian mentioned yesterday, filing it in the "life is too short" category. But I can't help myself, because the editorial is just shockingly factually inaccurate -- to say nothing of its rather curious judgment, such as the idea that Bashir "may be the only man able to guarantee...
