By Ilya Shapiro
One of our oldest laws, the Alien Tort Statute (1789), grants federal courts jurisdiction over lawsuits brought by aliens for actions “in violation of the law of nations.” Courts have differed in their method of interpreting this “law of nations” — an old way of saying “international law” – and thus in their decisions on what [...]
The ‘Law of Nations’ Is What It Was in 1789 is a post from Cato @ Liberty – Cato Institute Blog
By Christopher Preble
In his State of the Union address, President Obama emphatically declared, “Anyone who tells you that America is in decline or that our influence has waned, doesn’t know what they’re talking about.” Obama sought to put to rest the notion that he is embracing American decline, as GOP candidates Romney, Gingrich and Santorum have accused [...]
Obama’s Neocon Moment is a post from Cato @ Liberty – Cato Institute Blog
By Malou Innocent
As many expected, Islamist parties will form a dominant majority in Egypt’s first freely elected parliament. The Islamists are here to stay and fear-mongering over their rise is unproductive, since Egyptians will judge for themselves whether Islamists are delivering on their promises. Moreover, understanding the dynamics that brought religious parties to power should be the [...]
Egypt’s Arab Spring, One Year Later is a post from Cato @ Liberty – Cato Institute Blog
By Christopher Preble
Secretary Panetta’s announcement that the U.S. combat mission in Afghanistan will end as early as mid-2013 is a positive development. But it is long overdue and still leaves too many questions unanswered. After more than ten years of war in Afghanistan, the administration should follow through on its commitment to end combat operations and withdraw [...]
On Afghanistan, Panetta Leaves Questions Unanswered is a post from Cato @ Liberty – Cato Institute Blog
By Jim Harper
News that incautious comments on “tweeter” got British tourists excluded from the United States had Twitter alight yesterday. (Paperwork given to one of the two, on display in this news …
‘Destroy America’ = Suspicion Fail is a post from Cato @ Liberty – Cato Institute Blog
By Christopher Preble
While most news stories have accurately characterized the Obama administration’s proposed military spending cuts as “modest,” the Pentagon is planning significant reductions in the number of active-duty troops in the …
Civilian Personnel: The Missing Piece in the Pentagon’s Budget Puzzle is a post from Cato @ Liberty – Cato Institute Blog
By Benjamin H. Friedman
The changes announced in the Pentagon’s new budget guidance are, from my perspective, mostly good news, but woefully insufficient. They show how even limited austerity encourages prioritization among weapons systems …
The New Pentagon Budget: Better, but Not Great is a post from Cato @ Liberty – Cato Institute Blog
By Christopher Preble
It was clever, though a bit too opportunistic, for the president to begin and end his State of the Union address with references to Iraq, and the sacrifices of the troops. The war has been a disaster for the United States, and for the Iraqi people, of course. But the subject has always been a [...]
Obama’s State of the Union Signals Grand Strategy Status Quo is a post from Cato @ Liberty – Cato Institute Blog
By Benjamin H. Friedman
At both the beginning and end of his state of the union address last night, the president suggested that the country can solve its problems by modeling itself after the military. Near the start he said: At a time when too many of our institutions have let us down, [members of the military] exceed all [...]
The Trouble with the State of the Union: America Is Not a Military Unit is a post from Cato @ Liberty – Cato Institute Blog
By John Mueller
At the National Sheriffs’ Association Conference in Washington last week, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano noted that riders on the DC Metro system can hear her voice repeatedly promoting her department’s “If You See Something, Say Something” terrorism hotline campaign. “That’s a scary thought,” she suggested. Even scarier to me is the campaign itself. It [...]
A Scary Thought: Do We Really Need “If You See Something, Say Something?” is a post from Cato @ Liberty – Cato Institute Blog
