Freedom for Me, Rule of Law for Thee
The right's response to the coronavirus lockdowns brings out a longstanding American paradox.
Rule of law
A Pandemic Does Not Suspend the Rule of Law
Courts are beginning to recognize that public health powers, while broad, are not a blank check.
Chuck Schumer's Trumpian Attack on the Supreme Court Threatens the Judicial Independence That Democrats Claim To Defend
The Senate minority leader threatened two justices by name, and then he lied about it.
Trump's Continuing Commentary on Criminal Cases Reflects His Disdain for the Rule of Law
The president remains frankly puzzled by the distinction between can and should.
Agree or Disagree With Him, We Need People Like Judge Napolitano
The Fox News legal analyst is driven by principle, not power. That's a rare commodity in today's environment.
Vladimir Putin Is Not Reforming the State. He's Taking Power for Himself.
Putin has every intention of staying in charge.
Republicans Choose Trumpism Over Property Rights and the Rule of Law
Trump is just who he said he'd be four years ago. By rallying around him, Republicans are choosing to brand themselves in his image.
Rampant Criminal Laws Make Bullies and Tyrants Rejoice
When "almost anyone can be arrested for something," no one is safe.
Dangers of a World Where "Almost Anyone Can be Arrested for Something"
A recent dissenting opinion by Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch highlights some of the dangers of the enormous scope of modern criminal law.
Trump Plans to Ban Bump Stocks by Administrative Fiat
Since the accessories are legal, Attorney General Jeff Sessions is helping the president rewrite the law.
Trump is no Deregulator on Immigration
My new Penn Regulatory Review article explains why =widespread claims that Trump is a deregulator are undermined by his immigration policies, which include increases in regulation that outweigh reductions he may have achieved elsewhere.
Does Jury Nullification Undermine the Rule of Law?
In theory, yes. But not in the world we actually live in, where law enforcement is already rife with numerous discretionary decisions made unavoidable by the fact that we have far too many laws.
Overpopulation Scaremongering Never Gets Old
Neo-Malthusianism in the Sunday New York Times
You Want Checks and Balances? Stop Ignoring the Constitution When You're in Power
Once the trust in checks and balances is eroded, it's difficult to regain.
The Prospects for Progress in Africa
Nigeria will have a higher population than the U.S. by mid-century, when one in four people on Earth will live in Africa.
Obama's Outgoing Attitude on War and Terrorism: Do as He Says, Not as He Did
A speech on respecting rule of law and transparency from an administration that did neither.
Democrats Abandoned the Rule of Law. Under President Trump, Will They Help Restore It?
Libertarian legal scholar Randy Barnett on what Trump's victory means for the Supreme Court and our constitutional rights.
Hillary Clinton Demands Bernie Sanders Change Tone If He Wants More Debates—Blames Cruz, Trump on Disregard for Rule of Law
Cognitive dissonance in the 2016 election.
How Jury Duty Almost Turned Me into an Anarchist
Metal detectors, fire evacuations, Stalinist architecture, and ideological grilling, all in one day!
Obama Wants to Freeze CyberCriminals' Assets, Before They've Been Tried
And if you try to help any such accused cybercriminal, you are breaking the "law" too.
Five Libertarian Lessons in HBO's Game of Thrones
For libertarians it may seem like winter is always coming
The Rule of Nobody: Saving America from Dead Laws and Broken Government
Q and A with Philip K. Howard
Zimmerman Case Is No Grounds for Gun Control
Trayvon Martin may have been the one using the idea of "Stand Your Ground."
Federal Judge Troubled by Government Argument That US Targeted Killings Not Subject to Court Review
Including that of a sixteen-year-old American citizen in Yemen
President Obama Puts Politics Above the Rule of Law
From aiding Egypt to Obamacare, this administration demonstrates no regard for the Constitution.
Why the United States Can't Divorce Marriage
Forget the tax code: Completely private marriage contracts could make a mess of America's common law system
Washington, DC: Capital of The Absurd
Why the nation's capital is a clown show consumed by trivialities
Speed Cameras Survive Maryland Court Challenge
The cameras may be illegal, but the law provides no cause of action
China Needs the Rule of Law
What the fall of a Communist princeling and the jailbreak of a blind pauper tell us about China's prospects.
The Cure for Humanity's Natural State of Abject Poverty
A review of Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty.