As Texas stays on track to execute Jose Medellin on August 5, it is worth shifting our attention back to Texas. I've always thought the ideal solution to the ICJ-Vienna Convention conundrum is for each individual state to independently comply with the ICJ's judgment. Although I think the ICJ's interpretation of the Vienna Convention is not entirely persuasive, I think...
The somewhat surprising answer from U.S. Attorney General Michael Mukasey is "Yes!", or at least an acknowledgement that "the Nation remains engaged in an armed conflict with al Qaeda, the Taliban, and associated organizations, who have already proclaimed themselves at war with us and who are dedicated to the slaughter of Americans--soldiers and civilians alike." This is one takeaway from...
Something I missed while I was away: a substantial new tax on Americans who want out. As its name implies, the Heroes Earnings Assistance and Relief Tax Act of 2008 (will some self-respecting legislator please put a stop to bill names adding up to forced acronyms) is mostly about tax relief for service members and veterans. But there is also a...
Opinio Juris' good friend Bobby Chesney has dropped us a note to let everyone know that the National Security Advisors blog is being revived, with more content and new stuff. Check it out. And while I'm at it, thanks very much to Glenn Reynolds and Instapundit for the shout out about the new site! It's an Instalanche!...
Past and current presidents of the American Society of International Law today urged leaders in Congress to take legislative action to comply with the ICJ decision in Avena and halt the executions of Jose Medellin and the other affected death row inmates until the review required by the ICJ has been carried out. Full text of the letter is here. So, readers, is...
This item should take care of it, not the least because it appears on the op-ed page of the New York Times. The question of McCain's presidential eligibility, in light of his Canal Zone nativity, flared up again with the posting of this piece by Jack Chin (along with this report by Adam Liptak). Chin persuasively documents why McCain wasn't a citizen at...
Geoff Manaugh of BLDGBLOG, has up two posts on sovereignty and geography. Quoting from Neal Ascherson, one post begins: There "may or may not have been," he writes, "something called the 'Akwizgran Discrepancy'." It's now just "a forgotten thread of diplomatic folklore." (Ascherson, by the way, is the author of Black Sea, an excellent history of the region.) The discrepancy may have been a small...
It looks like Duncan's analysis of the potential problem in the Betancourt hostage rescure was on target. Bloomberg reports: A Colombia soldier wore a Red Cross emblem during the rescue of 15 hostages earlier this month, President Alvaro Uribe said. Uribe, who apologized for the use of the symbol, said the move wasn't sanctioned by the government and the soldier did it...
In a both metaphorical and literal last gasp effort, Mexico has won an "indication of provisional measures" from the International Court of Justice ordering that the United States (and Texas in particular) take all necessary measures to stop the pending executions of Mexican nationals. The United States of America shall take all measures necessary to ensure that Messrs. José Ernesto Medellín Rojas, César...
Okay, I really, really hate the Wallabies. But not this much: The United States planned to gas Australian troops in experiments with two of the most lethal nerve gases ever devised, newly declassified files have revealed. Previously top secret documents have shown that even as the world was outlawing chemical weapons at the height of the Cold War, Washington sought Canberra's permission...
I am thrilled to report that our friend and colleague Janet Levit has been named the new dean at the University of Tulsa Law School. Janet is an accomplished international law scholar and has proven her considerable management skills as the interim dean at Tulsa since last fall. She is also an alum of Opinio Juris, and a warm and supportive...
Stranger things have happened. The Carnegie Council's Ethics & International Affairs, a quarterly journal with consistently thoughtful interdisciplinary material, has this essay in its summer issue by Campbell Craig on the resurgence of the idea of world government. Craig finds three strands in recent thinking on the question, which basically boil down to why, how and and whether. The ''why' will...
