The National Security Law Podcast: That’s What Leadership Looks Like

Robert Chesney, Steve Vladeck
Friday, November 2, 2018, 12:33 PM

In this week’s episode we take a break from our deep-dive series on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act in order to reengage with the weekly inflow of national security law news. We had no choice, really, for one our sustaining members–Doe v. Mattis–saw dramatic developments. So here’s what we’ve got:

Published by The Lawfare Institute
in Cooperation With
Brookings

In this week’s episode we take a break from our deep-dive series on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act in order to reengage with the weekly inflow of national security law news. We had no choice, really, for one our sustaining members–Doe v. Mattis–saw dramatic developments. So here’s what we’ve got:

  • Military Detention of a US citizen – Erstwhile military detainee and US citizen John Doe has been named! Not only that, but he’s been released to Bahrain. And his passport was cancelled. We’ve got a recap of this remarkable development, and a summary of the larger lessons learned (or not learned) from this near-14 month legal odyssey. Adios, Doe v. Mattis!
  • Border deployment – News that President Trump is sending 5200 troops to the border has triggered a wave of references to ye ol’ Posse Comitatus Act, and even speculation about an executive attempt to suspend habeas. Buckle up for some debunking…
  • Birthright citizenship – As if the border deployment story is not enough, suddenly we find President Trump also talking about an executive order to revoke or limit birthright citizenship. Prepare for some more fun-with-debunking, as we take a tour through the Fourteenth Amendment and the Supreme Court’s decisions in Wong Kim Ark and Plyler v. Doe.
  • Domestic terrorism – The horrific events of the past week lead us to close with comments about domestic terrorism as a core national security concern.

No extended frivolity this week, either. Instead, we close with a special guest offering wise words and a resounding illustration of leadership.


Robert (Bobby) Chesney is the Dean of the University of Texas School of Law, where he also holds the James A. Baker III Chair in the Rule of Law and World Affairs at UT. He is known internationally for his scholarship relating both to cybersecurity and national security. He is a co-founder of Lawfare, the nation’s leading online source for analysis of national security legal issues, and he co-hosts the popular show The National Security Law Podcast.
Steve Vladeck is a professor of law at the University of Texas School of Law. A 2004 graduate of Yale Law School, Steve clerked for Judge Marsha Berzon on the Ninth Circuit and Judge Rosemary Barkett on the Eleventh Circuit. In addition to serving as a senior editor of the Journal of National Security Law & Policy, Steve is also the co-editor of Aspen Publishers’ leading National Security Law and Counterterrorism Law casebooks.

Subscribe to Lawfare