On the eve of public hearings held by Congress’ January 6 investigative committee, a former oversight staffer for the House of Representatives explains what such hearings aim to accomplish.
Former South African Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng.
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The ANC’s choice of parliamentary Speaker reflects poorly on the party leadership and contrasts starkly with President Cyril Ramaphosa’s commitment to uncorrupt governance.
President of Angola Joao Lourenco in Berlin, Germany in 2018. The powers of the president remain intact.
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The Angolan political elite lost an extraordinary opportunity to improve significantly the country’s constitution.
(L-R) Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY), Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) and Rep. Elaine Luria (D-VA) during a meeting on July 27, 2021, of the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
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GOP Rep. Liz Cheney says the American people “deserve the full and open testimony of every person with knowledge of the planning and preparation for Jan. 6.” Will they get it?
The separation of powers is critical for good governance.
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The actions of the chief justice undermine the independence, impartiality and competence of the judiciary, which erodes public confidence in the courts.
The move towards an open process for appointing judges is unprecedented in Lesotho.
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The appointment of judges has hitherto been an obscure and oftentimes clandestine affair. This has produced incompetent judges and led to claims that the judiciary is beholden to the executive.
South African chief justice Mogoeng Mogoeng’s term ends in September.
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The judicial process in South Africa is hugely contested. This places an exaggerated burden on the courts to act with maximum independence and impartiality.
The three branches of U.S. government often find themselves in tension.
White House, Eric Kiser; Capitol, John Xavier; Supreme Court, Architect of the Capitol
By trying to circumvent the courts, the government is undermining both the rule of law and separation of powers. There is also collateral damage to the rule of law.
Investigators are trying to follow the president’s money, and the Supreme Court just gave them the green light.
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In cases testing the limits of presidential power, the Supreme Court ruled the president has no special protections that exempt him from complying with subpoenas from Congress or state grand juries.
What message is Attorney General William Barr sending citizens in defying court order?
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Declaring an issue is a national emergency lets presidents act quickly and with few constraints. But once they get this kind of power, it’s hard to take it back – and it can produce bad policies.
Cases related to the Trump impeachment may end up at the Supreme Court.
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President Trump’s likely to be acquitted by the Senate in his impeachment trial. But the impeachment’s effects won’t end until lawsuits are resolved.
Republican lawmakers are seen as Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) oversees a vote on the second article of impeachment against President Donald Trump in the House of Representatives, Dec. 18, 2019.
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An expert on Watergate says that today’s House Republicans have taken precisely the opposite position than the GOP took in 1974 on the president’s power to withhold documents from Congress.
The U.S. Capitol, where the vote to impeach President Trump is expected to take place.
AP/J. Scott Applewhite
The impeachment vote is the latest, and most extreme, example of a power struggle between the executive branch and Congress that has existed since George Washington was president.
Ford, Carter, George H.W. Bush and Clinton led four of the first administrations to fully embrace policy analysis.
The Trump administration has once again tried to change immigration law, this time enacting severe limits on the rights of asylum-seekers. An immigration law expert says only Congress can do that.