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The Law : In Service to Power: Legal Scholars as Executive Branch Lawyers in the O bama Administration
Author(s) -
Edelson Chris
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
presidential studies quarterly
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.337
H-Index - 5
eISSN - 1741-5705
pISSN - 0360-4918
DOI - 10.1111/psq.12049
Subject(s) - presidential system , executive power , executive branch , law , administration (probate law) , political science , power (physics) , terrorism , service (business) , politics , business , physics , quantum mechanics , marketing
H arold K oh, D avid B arron, and M artin L ederman, all legal scholars with a record of emphasizing limits on presidential power, changed their views when they became executive branch lawyers in the O bama administration. K oh found a way to justify President Barack O bama's unilateral use of force in L ibya, while B arron and L ederman provided justification for the targeted killing, without judicial hearing, of U . S . citizens identified by the executive branch as senior operational terrorist leaders. This article considers whether these changed approaches can be justified by the scholars' changed roles.