National Security Law

William C. Banks Helps Fact Check Martial Law Rumors

Martial Law Isn’t ‘Imminent’

(FactCheck.org | March 25, 2020) President Donald Trump mobilized the National Guard on March 22 in Washington, California and New York — three states that have been hit hard by COVID-19 — to assist with everything from distribution of food to set-up of medical tents.

The following day, Defense Secretary Mark Esper clarified: “To be clear, this is not a move toward martial law, as some have erroneously claimed.”

Esper was responding to persistent online rumors that martial law is either currently in place or very near.

Generally, martial law is military authority substituted for civil government during periods of unrest. It’s a murky concept that hasn’t been defined in American law — as we’ll explain later.

As for the rumors hyping the idea that military rule is looming, the Facebook page for “Alternative Media Television” recently warned its more than 145,000 followers: “STORM IS COMING TO AMERICA!!!! MARTIAL LAW NEXT 24 HOURS!!!!!!”

That post linked to Alternative Media Television’s online store, which sells “emergency survival” gear and “emergency preparedness” food supplies.

Alex Jones, the conspiracy theorist behind the website Infowars.com, also has been pumping out misinformation on the issue while selling his own survivalist supplies, including face masks.

“We are already under overlying fields, crisscrossing fields, of martial law,” Jones said in one recent video …

… Basically, martial law is the temporary replacement of civil government by the military during a period of unrest, explained David Glazier, a professor at Loyola Law School and former U.S. Navy officer.

It has rarely been used in the U.S., said William Banks, professor of law at Syracuse University. The last time was in Hawaii, when martial law was instituted following the attack on Pearl Harbor …

Read the full article.

 

Hon. James E. Baker: Use the Defense Production Act to Flatten the Curve

By the Hon. James E. Baker, Director, Syracuse University Institute for Security Policy and Law

“There remain, and will remain, genuine questions involving the police power, public health, and the constitutional role of federalism in allocating responsibility between state, local, and federal authorities.”

(Just Security | March 20, 2020) The novel coronavirus bell curve is coming. We are not quite sure when or what form it will take. But it is coming, and we have rapidly diminishing time to influence its shape. One way we can do so, health experts state, is with more data about who has COVID-19 and who does not. That takes tests. More tests than, apparently, we have. Another way we can influence its shape is through social distancing. That takes widespread discipline and a commitment to our larger communities and not just ourselves. But where we cannot or should not distance, in health facilities and in supermarkets, it may require more surgical masks, gowns, gloves, eye protection, nasopharyngeal swabs, and wipes. More than we have. And, when the curve comes, we know from Italy, China, and South Korea that we will need hospital beds and ventilators–again, more than we have.

We know these things now. Why doesn’t the federal government act? It has the legal authority to do so: The Defense Production Act (DPA). On March 18, President Trump signed an Executive Order invoking the DPA to delegate authority found in Section 101 to the Secretary of Health and Human Services. However, various public statements by the president and vice president cast doubt on whether the DPA will be operationalized at this time or held in abeyance until some unspecified future date after the crisis has worsened. It is time to clear up the confusion, stop talking about the DPA, and start putting it in action.

DPA Background

In moments of crisis, time is sometimes lost because policymakers are unsure of the facts. Not here. We essentially know now what we will need. Time is also sometimes lost because there is genuine policy debate about the best course of action. Not here. We know now what we need to produce and where to send it. And, time is sometimes lost because of uncertainty about the government’s legal authority to act. Again—not here. The DPA provides broad authority for the government to take the necessary actions.

One hopes that the government’s lawyers have considered most, if not all, potential scenarios on a contingency basis. But sometimes new facts beget new and genuine questions of law that in a democracy ought to be resolved before action is taken. Sometimes, too, policymakers hide behind the law to explain inaction. Lacking the will to act, they blame the law and the lawyers for limiting or eliminating their options. But not here. There remain, and will remain, genuine questions involving the police power, public health, and the constitutional role of federalism in allocating responsibility between state, local, and federal authorities. However, there is no doubt the federal government has the authority to direct the industrial strength of the United States to produce more tests, more masks, more ventilators, and more hospital beds and do so now. The answer is the DPA.

The DPA is a Cold War era statute (1950) that derives in turn from World War II era statutes intended to harness the industrial capacity of the United States for war. The statute was drafted with steel and tanks in mind. However, the statute has been reauthorized over fifty times since 1950 and amended to include within its reach not just the traditional defense industrial base, but also the nation’s critical infrastructures, like public health and critical technologies …

Read the full article.

 

Students Can Apply to University Program that Provides Path into US Government Intelligence Careers

A new University wide program is creating a path toward public service careers for all Syracuse University undergraduate and graduate students interested in making important contributions to US and global security.

Syracuse University Intelligence Community Center of Academic Excellence

The University was designated by the US Intelligence Community (IC) last year as one of eight national Intelligence Community Centers for Academic Excellence (ICCAE), with a funding award of $1.5 million over five years. The IC is composed of 17 federal agencies, such as the Federal Bureau of Investigations, the National Security Agency and the Office of Naval Intelligence.

With the designation and funding, Syracuse University leads a consortium of four institutions—known as the Partnership for Educational Results/Syracuse University Adaptive, Diverse and Ethical Intelligence Community Professionals (PER/SUADE)—to recruit and educate culturally and ethnically diverse, multidisciplinary professionals from many different backgrounds interested in the intelligence field.

As a federal award recipient, Syracuse University’s ICCAE adopts an inclusive definition of diversity that moves beyond demographics to include the broad range of perspectives—from military veterans, women in security, to those with different abilities—all of whom are needed for the kind of emergent challenges facing the United States and the world.

Syracuse University’s ICCAE consortia partners are the Grove School of Engineering, the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, Norfolk State University and Wells College. The ICCAE seeks to build career pathways toward positions within the Intelligence Community and increase capacity to attract and educate talented under-resourced students with diverse experiences.

Entry-level positions within the IC can be difficult to obtain without experience, but the program provides a step up for students interested in an intelligence career through unique experiences and specific coursework.

“There’s no question that it is in the vital interest of the Intelligence Community to have as diverse workforce as possible because its mission is to understand diverse populations and diverse activities taking place around the world,” says Vice Admiral Robert Murrett (retired), principal investigator (PI) on the grant and deputy director of the Syracuse University Institute for Security Policy and Law (SPL). “You can’t do that when you all look the same, have all the same points of reference and come from the same place.”

Interested students from diverse backgrounds and experiences, including historically underrepresented students, students from different areas of the United States, women, student veterans and students of all abilities are encouraged to apply to the program.

The IC needs a variety of people and perspectives to better understand the whole picture of intelligence that is gathered to keep the nation safe and increase peace and security globally, says Corri Zoli, co-investigator on the award, associate teaching professor in the College of Law, research assistant professor in the Maxwell School and director of research with SPL.

“No one predicted the Arab Spring [a series of anti-government protests in countries in North Africa and the Middle East beginning in 2010]. That was an oversight on the part of our intelligence agencies,” says Zoli, who wrote the award and designed the IC Center for Academic Excellence with former Dean of Engineering and Computer Science Laura J. Steinberg, who is also a co-investigator (CO-I).

The Hon. James E. Baker, director of SPL and professor in the College of Law and Maxwell School is also a co-primary investigator (CO-PI) on the award, and faculty from the College of Law, Maxwell School, College of Engineering and Computer Science, Institute for Veterans and Military Families, Falk College and elsewhere are co-investigators, creating an interdisciplinary award. Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer Keith Alford and Suzette Melendez, faculty director of inclusion initiatives in the College of Law, are also co-investigators on the award.

“If you have diverse perspectives, the assumption is you’re not going to be missing huge swaths of experiences in the world because you’re going to have people who are more familiar with those places, those experiences, those communities,” Zoli says.

The IC also seeks a diversity of professionals in a variety of fields for its various intelligence operations.

“Each member of the US Intelligence Community has a different mission in the collection, analysis and dissemination of information relating to security concerns around the world,” says Murrett, also a professor of practice in public administration and international affairs in the Maxwell School. “Many of the organizations are part of US cabinet agencies or associated with military services.”

The IC is looking for professionals with both valuable functional abilities, such as critical thinking and speaking and writing skills, and subject matter expertise—along with the character traits of dedication, honesty, integrity and the ability to speak truth to power, Murrett says.

With so many professional opportunities in the IC, students from all disciplines across all of the University’s schools and colleges are encouraged to apply.

“For students pursuing a law degree, a master’s of public administration or international relations or a bachelor’s in public policy, they can do legal and policy analysis and planning at any of these agencies and develop intelligence policies that are both lawful and reasonable,” says Zoli, who explains the work of the Intelligence Community, including its covert operations, is based in US law.

There are opportunities for those interested in regions and area studies, international aid and human rights and those pursuing one of the critical languages designated by the IC, such as Arabic or Hindi.

“Anyone in the STEM fields who is interested in new categories of threat like cyberwarfare, artificial intelligence, machine learning and robotics would also be a good fit,” Zoli says.

Students pursuing a Ph.D. in the humanities—such as studies in culture, religion and philosophy—would be able to use their highly developed analytical skills in a variety of areas in the IC.

Zoli explains how each agency brings together professionals to work on initiatives that are improving lives and helping maintain security around the globe: “For the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, you could be working on mapping conflicts in the South Chinese Sea, looking at the best places for developing internet capacity around the world or counterterrorism spotting.

“The IC is looking for such a broad area of expertise that literally anyone who is successful in their academic degree program and wants to contribute to US security would be eligible,” Zoli says.

Students who are accepted into the program are required to take one of three core courses on the IC and two or more electives, and attend three ICCAE events per semester, including an annual symposium. Other opportunities include IC site visits in Washington, DC, study abroad, and networking and recruiting events with IC agency members.

Program members are also eligible to receive stipends to attend IC-related workshops, colloquia, conferences and participation in ICCAE program summer seminars, and may apply for scholarships. Students will also have opportunities to participate in IC internships and co-ops.

One upcoming event is the consortium’s Spring Symposium, which will be held Monday, March 2, from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., in the Hall of Languages, Room 500. Consortia partner faculty and students will be visiting Syracuse University from New York City and Virginia and panels will include teaching about intelligence, diversity experiences in the IC and faculty research. Speakers will include Julie Martin, chief counsel, National Counterterrorism Center, and Jonathan P. Gupton, with the Department of Energy. The campus community is invited to attend.

The benefits for students can be substantial. Along with networking and internship opportunities at various agencies, students will gain a deeper knowledge of the work that is done by the IC and why it matters.

“Students will have a better understanding of how the intelligence apparatus works from a national standpoint but also in other countries,” Murrett says. “It makes you a better citizen of whatever country you are from and better able to understand developments around the world around the contexts of the intelligence field and international security.”

For more information about the program and how to apply, visit the Syracuse University Intelligence Community Center of Academic Excellence website or contact Zoli at 315.443.4523 or cbzoli@law.syr.edu, or Murrett at 315.443.3682 or rbmurret@syr.edu.

Students Can Apply to University Program that Provides Path into US Government Intelligence Careers

Law & Policy of Artificial Intelligence

In 2019, SPL received a two-year grant from the Center for Emerging Technologies (CSET) at Georgetown University to conduct research on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and national security, law, ethics, and policy.

This research will seek solutions to national security risks raised by the emergence of AI while balancing the many legal and ethical concerns raised by its misapplication. IPL faculty—including the SPL Director the Hon. James E. Baker, Deputy Direct Robert Murrett, Professor Laurie Hobart, and Research Fellow Matthew Mittelsteadt—are working in collaboration to publish research and white papers to help drive the conversation on AI national security policy.

Products

BOOK

Artificial IntelligenceThe Centaur’s Dilemma—National Security Law for the Coming AI Revolution

The Hon. James E. Baker

250 Pages
Brookings Institution Press
Publishing date: December 2020
Paperback ISBN: 9780815737995

The increasing use of artificial intelligence poses challenges and opportunities for nearly all aspects of society, including the military and other elements of the national security establishment. This book addresses how national security law can and should be applied to artificial intelligence, which enables a wide range of decisions and actions not contemplated by current law. Written in plain English, The Centaur’s Dilemma will help guide policymakers, lawyers, and technology experts as they deal with the many legal questions that will arise when using artificial intelligence to plan and carry out the actions required for the nation’s defense.

REPORTS

A DPA for the 21st Century (April 2021)

By the Hon. James E. Baker

A DPA for the 21st CenturyThe Defense Production Act can be an effective tool to bring US industrial might to bear on broader national security challenges, including those in technology.

If updated and used to its full effect, the DPA could be leveraged to encourage development and governance of artificial intelligence. And debate about the DPA’s use for AI purposes can serve to shape and condition expectations about the role the law’s authorities should or could play, as well as to identify essential legislative gaps.

National Security Law and the Coming AI Revolution

AI Symposium ReportObservations from a Symposium hosted by the Institute for Security Policy and Law and the Georgetown Center for Security and Emerging Technology (Oct. 29, 2020)

The symposium commenced with a presentation on what AI is and how it works to make the technology behind AI accessible to national security generalists. For readers who did not attend the Symposium we collect at the outset of this report some of the general observations made about the constellation of technologies referred to as AI.

We then present the key points and observations from each of three panels – AI and the Law of Armed Conflict; AI and National Security: Ethics, Bias, and Principles; and AI and National Security Decision-Making. The Report concludes with a discussion about the role of lawyers, policy-law-technology teaming, and importance of making purposeful ethical and legal choices, which will embed our values in AI applications but also result in more accurate and effective national security tools.

Ethics and Artificial Intelligence: A Policymaker’s Introduction (April 2021)

By the Hon. James E. Baker

Ethics and AIThe law plays a vital role in how artificial intelligence can be developed and used in ethical ways. But the law is not enough when it contains gaps due to lack of a federal nexus, interest, or the political will to legislate. And law may be too much if it imposes regulatory rigidity and burdens when flexibility and innovation are required.

Sound ethical codes and principles concerning AI can help fill legal gaps. In this paper, CSET Distinguished Fellow James E. Baker offers a primer on the limits and promise of three mechanisms to help shape a regulatory regime that maximizes the benefits of AI and minimizes its potential harms.

AI Verification: Mechanisms to Ensure AI Arms Control Compliance (February 2021)

By Matthew Mittelsteadt, SPL AI Policy Fellow

The rapid integration of artificial intelligence into military systems raises critical questions of ethics, design and safety. While many states and organizations have called for some form of “AI arms control,” few have discussed the technical details of verifying countries’ compliance with these regulations. This brief offers a starting point, defining the goals of “AI verification” and proposing several mechanisms to support arms inspections and continuous verification.

The report defines “AI Verification” as the process of determining whether countries’ AI and AI systems comply with treaty obligations. “AI Verification Mechanisms” are tools that ensure regulatory compliance by discouraging or detecting the illicit use of AI by a system or illicit AI control over a system.

Despite the importance of AI verification, few practical verification mechanisms have been proposed to support most regulation in consideration. Without proper verification mechanisms, AI arms control will languish. The report seeks to jumpstart the regulatory conversation by proposing mechanisms of AI verification to support AI arms control.

SYMPOSIUM

National Security Law and the Coming AI Revolution

On Oct. 28, 2020, Syracuse University Institute for Security Policy and Law and the Center for Security and Emerging Technology at Georgetown University’s Walsh School of Foreign Service presented a one-day virtual symposium on “National Security Law and the Coming AI Revolution,” including panels on:

  • AI & the Law of Armed Conflict
  • AI & National Security Ethics: Bias, Data, & Principles
  • AI & National Security Decision-Making
Visit the Symposium webpage

Newly Re-Named Syracuse University Institute for Security Policy and Law Expands Mission Toward Emerging Technologies, Intelligence Community

Syracuse University Institute for Security Policy and Law (SPL) is the new name for the Institute for National Security and Counterterrorism (INSCT), a collaboration between the Syracuse University College of Law and the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs.

Security Policy and Law

Founded by Professor of Law Emeritus William C. Banks in 2003, the Institute has its roots in the global response to terrorism in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. It has since expanded to work across the Syracuse University campus and beyond on a wide spectrum of national and international security topics, including homeland security, the law of armed conflict, violent extremism, postconflict reconstruction, disaster response, the rule of law, veterans’ affairs, critical infrastructure, cybersecurity, and emerging technologies.

The Institute’s new name and identity reflect this growth in topics and activities, and it acknowledges the Institute’s longstanding flexibility in addressing evolving security challenges—both within the United States and around the world—through interdisciplinary research, teaching, public service, and policy analysis.

The Syracuse University Institute for Security Policy and Law is led by the Hon. James E. Baker, former Chief Judge of the US Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces, and former Legal Adviser to the National Security Council. The Institute’s Deputy Director is Vice Admiral Robert B. Murrett (Ret.), former Director of the US National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency and former Director of Naval Intelligence.

“Our new identity recognizes the essential interdisciplinary nature of contemporary security challenges.”

“Our new identity recognizes the essential interdisciplinary nature of contemporary security challenges,” says Judge Baker. “As the Syracuse University Institute for Security Policy and Law, we continue our mission to conduct leading-edge policy and law research and analysis across disciplines and to educate and inspire the next generation of security thought-leaders and practitioners.”

“A prime mover in national security policy and law for more than 16 years, the re-positioned Syracuse University Institute for Security Policy and Law is poised for the future,” says Dean Craig M. Boise, College of Law. “I am particularly excited about the Institute’s expansion into emerging technologies, the private practice of security, and diversity in the intelligence community. These changes are transforming the workplaces our students are entering. By staying abreast of these trends, the Institute is and will remain a premier training ground for future practitioners across all security sectors.”

“This new identity change reflects the expansive ways in which policy, law, and governance intersect a broad array of issue areas that shape not just US national security but human security around the world,” says Dean David M. Van Slyke, Maxwell School. “As a top-ranked research institution, Syracuse University provides boundless opportunities for us to explore these intersections across campus.”

SPL’s growing subject-matter expertise and diversity is evident in the range of sectors that the Institute’s certificate program graduates work across, in the national and international security community, for US and foreign governments, international humanitarian organizations, the intelligence community, public health agencies, the private sector, think tanks, and NGOs. Alumni serve in all five branches of the US military.

SPL offers three interdisciplinary certificates of advanced study, in Security Studies, National Security and Counterterrorism Law, and Postconflict Reconstruction. It has graduated more than 700 students from its academic programs since 2003.

Adding to its emerging research and practice areas of expertise, the Institute recently played a key leadership role in generating external funding for two major collaborative research initiatives.

The first award is a research and production partnership with the Georgetown University-based Center for Security and Emerging Technology (CSET). As part of the $500,000 agreement, SPL will assist CSET in investigating the legal, policy, and security impacts of emerging technology; supporting academic work in security and technology studies; and delivering nonpartisan analysis to the law and policy community. Judge Baker is the grant’s Primary Investigator.

In the second, federal award, Syracuse University was named as a US Intelligence Community Center for Academic Excellence (ICCAE) with total support for the new program up to $1.5 million over five years. Known as the Partnership for Educational Results/Syracuse University Adaptive, Diverse, and Ethical Intelligence Community Professionals (PER/SUADE), Syracuse University is leading a consortium of universities and colleges to recruit and educate talented, diverse students interested in public service careers in the intelligence and national security fields.

The grant’s goal is to help diversify the US government’s intelligence and national security pipelines. The program is open to all Syracuse University students—graduate and undergraduate—from all schools and colleges, as well as partner schools (Wells College, the Grove School of Engineering at the City College of New York, John Jay College of Criminal Justice, and Norfolk State University). PER/SUDAE’s Primary Investigator is Vice Admiral Murrett and Judge Baker is the Co-Primary Investigator. Multiple University faculty are helping to design the program as co-investigators, including the SPL Director of Research Corri Zoli and faculty from the College of Law, Maxwell School, College of Arts and Sciences, Institute for Veterans and Military Families, College of Engineering and Computer Science, University College, and elsewhere.

William C. Banks Reflects on Trump Impeachment for China Daily

Democrats start Trump impeachment probe

(China Daily | Sept. 26, 2019) Republican president calls US House’s drive ‘positive’, yet tweets with fury.

“If the allegations are true, the abuse of power is significant.”

Democrats made their move against US President Donald Trump on Tuesday, as Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced that the House of Representatives will open an impeachment inquiry over a phone call Trump had with Ukraine’s president in which former vice-president Joe Biden and his son were reportedly discussed.

“The actions taken to date by the president have seriously violated the Constitution,” Pelosi said after meeting with House Democrats at the Capitol. “The president must be held accountable. No one is above the law.”

The phone conversation was reported to be included in a whistleblower complaint that the Trump administration has not turned over to Congress, although a news report on Tuesday said the White House would release it.

The impeachment probe will center on whether Trump sought help from a foreign government in his bid for reelection next year. Biden is now a leading contender for the Democratic presidential nomination …

… William C. Banks, a law professor at New York’s Syracuse University, told China Daily: “If the allegations are true, the abuse of power is significant, and many members of Congress will be motivated to conduct impeachment proceedings.” He is the co-author of a 1994 book about tensions between the executive and legislative branches, National Security Law and the Power of the Purse.

As for the impact on the 2020 election, Banks said: “It’s too early to say. It could be the beginning of the end for President Trump, or the proceedings could backfire and propel Trump to reelection” …

Read the full article.

 

INSCT Welcomes Five National Security Experts as Distinguished Fellows

The Institute for National Security and Counterterrorism (INSCT)—a collaboration between the Syracuse University College of Law and the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs—has added five senior national security experts to its academic and advisory leadership team.

These Distinguished Fellows—drawn from the upper echelons of the national security and intelligence communities—will assist the Institute’s mission with a variety of assignments that will directly benefit students and expand INSCT’s portfolio of research and policy projects.

Joining INSCT are Steve Bunnell, Co-Chair of Data Security and Privacy at O’Melveny & Myers LLP, former General Counsel of the US Department of Homeland Security, and former Chief of the Criminal Division at the US Attorney’s Office in Washington, DC; Rajesh De, Chair of the Cybersecurity and Data Privacy practice and Co-Chair of the National Security practice at Mayer Brown LLP and former General Counsel for the US National Security Agency; Avril Haines, Senior Research Scholar at Columbia University, former Deputy National Security Advisor, and former Deputy Director of the Central Intelligence Agency; Amy Jeffress, Partner at Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer LLP and former Counselor to the US Attorney General; and Lala Qadir, Associate and Member of the Artificial Intelligence Initiative at Covington & Burling LLP and Lecturer in Law at George Washington University Law School.

“These Distinguished Fellows are five of the leading experts in the field of national security law and policy, and I am thrilled that they have chosen to affiliate with the Institute,” says the Hon. James E. Baker, Director, INSCT. “They bring extraordinary practice experience and diverse expertise to Syracuse. They will expand the Institute’s reach in areas such as emerging technology, data privacy, and cybersecurity. Even better, if you think they are great at what they do—and they are—they are even better people, among the most honorable and ethical public servants I have known. If your mission is to train the next generation of thought leaders and practitioners in the field of public and private national security law, you would want this team of Fellows on your side.”

Among the Fellows’ roles—in Syracuse, New York City, and Washington, DC—they will help teach national security courses; lecture in the Institute’s speakers program; provide students with career advice and guidance; and offer insights and input regarding the Institute’s classroom and practical curriculum and its research and policy portfolio. They also will help the Institute stand up and teach a cutting-edge course on the practice of private national security law.

“Specifically, the Distinguished Fellows give the Institute the opportunity to fill a need that is not being met,” continues Judge Baker. “They will help us teach students at the College of Law and the Maxwell School what they need to know in order to practice in the area of private national security law and policy—at law firms, as in-house counsel, or as business officers and executives. This is an area of private practice that is growing exponentially, that offers career opportunity for our students, and that is critical to US national security, as well as the protection and advancement of US legal values.” It is anticipated that additional Fellows will join those announced today.

“The addition of these national security experts to the Institute for National Security and Counterterrorism significantly strengthens the Institute’s already formidable academic and research portfolio,” says Dean Craig M. Boise, Syracuse University College of Law. “Crucially, INSCT Distinguished Fellows will open up important opportunities and avenues for law and public policy students, especially in emerging areas of national security studies, such as artificial intelligence, data privacy, and transnational crime.”

“With decades of experience working on some of the most pressing law and policy issues of our time, INSCT Distinguished Fellows will add greatly to our students’ understanding of the practice of national security law and policymaking,” says Dean David M. Van Slyke, Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs. “Their insights as senior civil servants and practitioners in political positions, as well as in private practice and academia, will enrich the student experience and expand the depth and reach of Maxwell’s thought leadership and emerging research.”

James E. Baker Delivers Remarks on Counterterrorism at Oklahoma City University School of Law

INSCT Director the Hon. James E. Baker was a participant at the 2019 Stephen Sloan Seminar at Oklahoma City University School of Law on March 28, 2019. His remarks—delivered in conversation with Homer S. Pointer, Senior Fellow of the Murrah Center for Homeland Security Law and Policy—were titled “The Evolving Legal Framework of Counterterrorism.”

“Law is one thing that unites all Americans. By ‘law’ I mean the principles of justice, due process, and security.”

This year’s Sloan Seminar—“Assessing the Future of Domestic and International Terrorism”—was billed as a “a conference honoring the ground-breaking contributions of Dr. Stephen Sloan to the field of counterterrorism, [bringing] together experts in counterterrorism analysis, policy, and national security law.” It was co-sponsored by the Murrah Center and the Center for Intelligence and National Security at the University of Oklahoma.

Among other pressing topics, Baker addressed the recent attack in Christchurch, New Zealand, the role of corporate social responsibility in regulating social media content, the First Amendment implications of regulating hate speech, and Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. “Law,” he noted, “is one thing that unites all Americans. By ‘law’ I mean the principles of justice, due process, and security, not specific provisions of individual laws.” He added, “This law is America’s national security strength and virtue.”

In addition to Judge Baker’s remarks, other speakers explored “The US Perspective on the Future Direction of Terrorism,” “The European Perspective on the Future Direction of Terrorism,” and “Reflections on 40 Years of Counterterrorism Efforts, the Operational Dynamics of Terrorism, and What Lies Ahead.”

Joining Judge Baker at the seminar were Michael J. Boettcher, Senior Fellow at the University of Oklahoma Center for Intelligence and National Security; David N. Edger, Managing Director and Founder of 3CI Consulting LLC and former CIA officer in the clandestine service; Robert A. Kandra, Senior Advisor with the Chertoff Group, Advisor to the XK Group, and former CIA officer in the clandestine service; Homer S. Pointer, Senior Fellow of the Murrah Center for Homeland Security Law and Policy, Oklahoma City University School of Law; Magnus Ranstorp, Research Director at the Centre for Asymmetric Threat Studies, Swedish National Defense University; James L. Regens, Regents Professor and Founding Director of the University of Oklahoma Center for Intelligence and National Security; and Stephen Sloan, Noble Foundation Presidential Professor Emeritus of Political Science, University of Oklahoma.

William C. Banks Joins CSRR as Distinguished Senior Fellow

Rutgers Center for Security, Race, and Rights (CSRR) has announced that William C. Banks has joined CSRR team as a Distinguished Senior Fellow.

Banks is a Syracuse University College of Law Board of Advisors Distinguished Professor and Emeritus Professor at the College of Law and a Maxwell School Professor of Public Administration and International Affairs. During 2015-2016, Banks was Interim Dean of the College of Law. He is the Founding Director of the Institute for National Security and Counterterrorism.

“I am especially pleased to join the Center for Security, Race and Rights (CSRR) as a Distinguished Senior Fellow,” says Banks. “Centers such as CSRR are an essential counterweight to the tendencies of governments that see security and terrorism problems through a religious and racial lens. While respect for basic human and civil rights should be at the undeniable core of law and policy in governments worldwide, glaring and persistent abuses abound. CSRR is an important voice for drawing attention to rights shortfalls and showing the way toward more just laws and policies.”

As Trump Turns to a National Emergency, the Media Turns to William C. Banks

President Donald J. Trump has made it known that he would declare a “national emergency” at the US/Mexico border in order to secure funds to build a southern border wall, an effort to augment funds that Congress has appropriated for border security in a bill that the president is expected to sign.

It turns out it’s going to be quite the tricky fight for Trump should he decide to actually declare a national emergency solely to get the border wall built.

The national emergency declaration would be unusual in this case, as the southern border crisis lacks the immediacy of a catastrophe such as Sept. 11, 2001. The declaration also may be unconstitutional, and it probably will be challenged in the courts. National security expert Professor Emeritus William C. Banks has been in demand by top media outlets to explain the what, why, when, and how of declaring a national emergency.

Trump wants the military to build the border wall. It might not be legal.

(Vox | Feb. 14, 2019) After months of back-and-forth with Congress, President Donald Trump is expected to soon declare a national emergency in order for the US military to construct the southern border wall he’s promised for years.

But there’s a pretty big problem with that, according to experts — namely, that he has a very weak legal case, and there’s strong political opposition to making that happen.

Set aside the fact that Trump’s own administration doesn’t assess that there is a massive national security problem at the US-Mexico border. Trump believes there is, and he plans to take extraordinary measures to keep asylum seekers out of the country.

William Banks, a national security law expert at Syracuse University, helped me understand what to expect in the days ahead.

It turns out it’s going to be quite the tricky fight for Trump should he decide to actually declare a national emergency solely to get the border wall built.

The key law in question is the appropriately named “Construction authority in the event of a declaration of war or national emergency.” Here’s what it says:

In the event of a declaration of war or the declaration by the President of a national emergency in accordance with the National Emergencies Act that requires use of the armed forces, the Secretary of Defense, without regard to any other provision of law, may undertake military construction projects, and may authorize the Secretaries of the military departments to undertake military construction projects, not otherwise authorized by law that are necessary to support such use of the armed forces. Such projects may be undertaken only within the total amount of funds that have been appropriated for military construction, including funds appropriated for family housing, that have not been obligated …

Read the full article.

SEE ALSO …

Trump’s ‘authoritarian’ streak stirs backlash at home and abroad (The Washington Post | Feb. 19, 2019)

Trump’s national emergency and GOP senators (CNN | Feb. 19, 2019)

State of Chaos: What Comes Next for Mueller and for Trump’s “Emergency”? (On Topic with Renato Mariotti | Feb. 16, 2019)

Prof. Bill Banks interviewed by KCBS Radio (Feb. 16, 2019)

Trump declares U.S.-Mexico border emergency; Democrats protest (Reuters | Feb. 15, 2019)

Trump’s national emergency to contend with lawsuits (China Daily | Feb. 18, 2019)

Trump’s Face-Saving Way Out of Crisis Raises Fears Over Rule of Law (The New York Times | Feb. 14, 2019)

National Emergency Powers and Trump’s Border Wall, Explained (The New York Times | Jan. 7, 2019)