Horizon Information Portal

HSPLS site

eBooks/Audiobooks

Reading Program

Power without constraint : the post-9/11 presidency and national security / Chris Edelson.

by Edelson, Chris, author.

View full image

Madison, Wisconsin : The University of Wisconsin Press, c2016.

Bush, George W. (George Walker), 1946-

Executive power -- United States -- History -- 21st century.

National security -- United States.

9780299307400 (cloth, alk. paper) :

0299307409 (cloth, alk. paper)

x, 239 pages ; 24 cm

The Constitution and presidential national security power -- Presidential national security power before September 11, 2001 -- The George W. Bush administration and national security power -- The Bush administration and the use of military force -- The Bush administration and surveillance -- The Bush administration and military detention -- The Bush administration and torture -- The Bush administration and secrecy -- The Barack Obama administration and national security power -- The Obama administrations and the use of military force -- The Obama administration and surveillance -- The Obama administration and military detention -- The Obama administration and torture -- The Obama administration and secrecy.

"As a presidential candidate, Barack Obama criticized the George W. Bush administration for its unrestrained actions in matters of national security. In secret Justice Department memos, President Bushs officials had claimed for the executive branch total authority to use military force in response to threats of terrorism. They set aside laws made by Congress, even criminal laws prohibiting torture and warrantless surveillance. Candidate Obama promised to restore the rule of law and make a clean break with the Bush approach. President Obama has not done so. Why? In a thorough comparison of the Bush and Obama administrations national security policies, Chris Edelson demonstrates that President Obama and his officials have used softer rhetoric and toned-down legal arguments, but in key areasmilitary action, surveillance, and state secretsthey have simply found new ways to assert power without meaningful constitutional or statutory constraints. Edelson contends that this legacy of the two immediately post-9/11 presidencies raises crucial questions for future presidents, Congress, the courts, and American citizens. Where is the political will to restore a balance of powers among branches of government and adherence to the rule of law? What are the limits of authority regarding presidential national security power? Have national security concerns created a permanent shift to unconstrained presidential power?"--Publisher's website.

Horizon Information Portal 3.25_9884

Powered by Dynix

© 2001-2013 SirsiDynix All rights reserved.

Horizon Information Portal