
2024 election
The PATRIOT Act Turns 23: Constitutional Subversion Begets Political Repression
In the hands of an authoritarian president, the PATRIOT Act could be wielded as an instrument of domestic terror and political repression at scale.
2024 election
In the hands of an authoritarian president, the PATRIOT Act could be wielded as an instrument of domestic terror and political repression at scale.
2024 election
Earlier this month, the Department of Justice's Inspector General released two reports that, in the pre-Trump era, would've sparked outrage and at least public Congressional hearings.
Surveillance
Cato Surveillance Week 2024 kicks off on October 7. Also, late Friday we filed yet another FOIA lawsuit against the FBI over FISA Section 702 violation records.
2024 election
What makes the prospect of a Trump victory even more chilling is the kind of law enforcement and data collection tools that would be at Trump's disposal if he wins - tools he would be eager to use against his political opponents.
2024 election
Earlier this month, the House passed a bill in the spirit of the McCarran Act that would revive the odious and discredited Trump-era "China Initiative.
2024 election
Our failure to roll back 9/11-driven executive power grabs and "coup proof" our government against internal authoritarian political threats may come back to haunt us, and soon.
TSA
The institutional threats to our constitutional rights left unaddressed by the federal legislature are major, long standing, and perfectly exploitable by a would-be authoritarian like Trump.
FBI
It was a secret, and unconstitutional, assault on the First Amendment protected activities of the persons and entities involved, a state-sponsored form of "divide and conquer" aimed not at the Soviet Union, but a segment of the far left public in America.
2024 election
The DNC party platform reflects a pre-Trump era mindset, ignoring the need to eliminate legal and institutional vulnerabilities that leave us at risk of another "MAGA movement" coup attempt. Kamala Harris must act to "coup proof" the institutions of the Republic.
Border Patrol
Marshall and Brennan were certain that the majority's ruling in the case would ultimately lead to Fourth Amendment rights violations at scale at these internal checkpoints. History has proven them right.
2024 election
A University of Arizona sociologist provides a provocative but selective and ideologically tinged look at how police in four Texas law enforcement agencies are trained and fielded and what it tells us about the viability of police reform efforts.
political repression
Sometimes, it's helpful to look at a phenomenon over time to understand how pervasive it is in reality. That's especially true of surveillance-enabled political repression.