Office of Legal Counsel — Bunk History

President Truman in the Oval Office after presenting three Korean War veterans with the Medal of Honor.

When History Becomes Precedent in the OLC

Official decisions about military intervention and executive power are often based on outdated historical interpretations.

by Mary L. Dudziak via Balkinization on January 16, 2023

Barr’s Playbook: He Misled Congress When Omitting Parts of Justice Dep’t Memo in 1989

This is not the first time Barr has been accused of covering up official legal findings.

by Ryan Goodman via Just Security on April 15, 2019

The Only Way to Find Out If the President Can Be Indicted

Scholars disagree on existing precedents—and the question won’t be settled until evidence leads a prosecutor to try it.

by Garrett Epps via The Atlantic on May 23, 2018

The Toxic Legacy of the Korean War

The Korean War upended the constitutional balance of war powers. It has been cited by presidents ever since.

by Mary L. Dudziak via Washington Post on March 1, 2019

Donald Trump walking onstage, next to four American flags.

‘The Dred Scott of Our Time’

The Supreme Court has invested the presidency with quasi-monarchial powers, repudiating the foundational principle of the rule of law.

by Sean Wilentz via New York Review of Books on July 4, 2024

Richard Nixon pointing to a map of Cambodia.

The Unhappy Legal History of the War Powers Resolution

How the law became a staging ground for unrestrained war.

by Mary L. Dudziak via Modern American History on July 8, 2023

Demonstrators with signs supporting medication abortion.

Conservatives Are Turning to a 150-Year-Old Obscenity Law to Outlaw Abortion

With the Comstock Act of 1873 coming back to life, reproductive care, LGBTQ protections, and a host of other civil rights are now at risk.

by Melissa Gira Grant via The New Republic on April 12, 2023

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