As the U.S. gears up for another presidential election this Fall, it's crucial to understand the ins and outs of how Americans elect their leaders. What is the electoral college? And what happens if there is a contested election? This week, we're revisiting a past conversation with Professor Edward Foley, Director of Election Law at Ohio State University's Moritz College of Law. Ned dives in on how Americans elect our federal officers, and how the law and the courts have ruled on voting; from naming electors to deciding Bush v. Gore in 2000.

Professor Edward Foley is the Ebersold Chair in Constitutional Law at The Ohio State University and director of the school's election law program:

References:

Edward Foley "Think the Constitution protects your right to vote? That’s not really true — but it should." Washington Post, October 19, 2020

Presidential Elections and Majority Rule: The Rise, Demise, and Potential Restoration of the Jeffersonian Electoral College. Edward Foley, 2020

Ballot Battles: The History of Disputed Elections in the United States. Edward Foley, 2016

Bush v. Gore 531 US 98 (2000)

Chiafalo v. Washington 591 US_ (2020)

Republican Party of Pennsylvania v. Boockvar

Edward Foley "The Supreme Court ruling on ballot deadlines may be more of a reprieve for Democrats than a win." Washington Post, October 20, 2020

This week in Washington, leadership from NATO's 32 member nations convene for the annual NATO summit, marking the alliance's 75th anniversary. On the docket are contemporary challenges and controversies, all of which will influence the future direction of NATO. In honor of the summit we're re-airing two previous conversations, featuring NATO experts Erwan Lagadec and Simon Miles. Separately they discuss the formation of the NATO alliance, how it has transformed since its inception, and what may come in its future.

Dr. Erwan Lagadec is Associate Research Professor at the George Washington University's Institute for European, Russian, and Eurasian Studies (IERES)

Simon Miles is Assistant Professor in the Sandford School of Public Policy at Duke University

References:

Sarotte, M. E. Not One Inch: America, Russia, and the Making of Post-Cold War Stalemate, Yale University Press, 30 Nov. 2021

NSLT Ep. 228, "Ukraine Series: The Power of NATO with Dr. Erwan Lagadec"

NSLT Ep. 314, "NATO, the Warsaw Pact, and Understanding Today's Geopolitical Climate with Simon Miles"

Hirsh, Michael. “Trump’s Plan for NATO Is Emerging.” POLITICO, 7 Feb. 2024

The North Atlantic Treaty, Article 5

Miles, Simon. A View from Brussels: Secret NATO Reports about the East European Transition, 1988–1991. Historical Studies on Central Europe, 2022

The Warsaw Pact, 1955

Vance, J.D. Europe Must Stand on Its Own Two Feet on Defence, 19 Feb. 2024

This week, Elisa tackles hot-button issues in national security law: threats to the SWIFT system, Taiwan's semiconductor industry, and the uncertain future of NATO as we inch our way towards the U.S. presidential election this fall.

References:

NSLT Ep. 217, "Crackdown on Russia's Dirty Money with Brian Egan"

NSLT Ep. 325, "Security Lessons from Sci-Fi Worlds: Total Recall with Sunita Patel (Part 1)"

NSLT Ep. 228, "Ukraine Series: The Power of NATO with Dr. Erwan Lagadec"

Reiff, Nathan. “Swift and Sanctions: How Banking System Impacts International Relations.”Investopedia, Investopedia, 19 July 2022

Baazil, Diederik. “ASML and TSMC Can Disable Chip Machines If China Invades Taiwan.”Bloomberg.Com, 21 May 2024

Masafumi, IIDA. “China’s Chilling Cognitive Warfare Plans.” The Diplomat, The Diplomat, 7 May 2024

NATO Article 5

Like a vast haystack of digital information, bulk data conceals critical needles—sensitive details that, if found and exploited, can pose severe risks to national security. This week, Elisa is joined by Eric Johnson, the Principal Deputy Chief of the Foreign Investment Review Section at the DOJ's National Security Division. Together they discuss the implications of E.O. 14117, the balance between individual privacy and collective security, and how everyday digital activities contribute to the creation of bulk data.

Eric Johnson is the Principal Deputy Chief of the Foreign Investment Review Section in the United States Department of Justice’s National Security Division:

References:

E.O. 14117

E.O. 13873

The International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA)

The General Data Protection Regulation

Schrems I

Schrems II

Mullins, Brody, and Luke Mullins. The Wolves of K Street: The Secret History of How Big Money Took over Big Government. Simon & Schuster, 2024

The Congressional Research Service website

Sanchi Jayaram, Assistant Director, American Law Division of the Congressional Research Service

Could the personal data of millions of Americans be our country's greatest national security treasure? This week, host Elisa is joined by Brandon Pugh, Policy Director and Resident Senior Fellow for the Cybersecurity and Emerging Threats team at the R Street Institute. Together, they discuss the silent behemoth that is online personal data collection and distribution. What could a foreign adversary do with our bulk data? And how close is Congress to passing a framework to address this growing threat?

Brandon Pugh is Policy Director and Resident Senior Fellow for the R Street Institute’s Cybersecurity and Emerging Threats team

References:

Register to attend our June 28th luncheon program: "The National Security Constitution in the 21st Century: A discussion with Harold Hongju Koh"

R Street Event, June 18th: "Cybersecurity: Tackling the Policy Puzzle"

The AI Summit at Blackhat USA – August 6th 2024

National Cyber Security Strategy, March 2023

Microtargeting Unmasked: Safeguarding Law Enforcement, the Military, and the Nation in the Era of Personalized Threats

The General Data Protection Regulation

The American Privacy Rights Act (APRA)

H.R.8152, American Data Privacy and Protection Act

H.R.7520, Protecting Americans’ Data from Foreign Adversaries Act of 2024

S. 1409, Kids Online Safety Act

Cyber Civil Defense Initiative

On May 29th, the Standing Committee on Law and National Security hosted a luncheon featuring Jonathan Meyer, General Counsel for the DHS. Moderated by committee member Harvey Rishikof, Jonathan shared some of the department's key insights from the 2024 Homeland Threat Assessment, highlighting threats like foreign and domestic terrorism, immigration, cyber attacks, and the leveraging of AI technologies to create and spread disinformation. The following episode features his commentary from the event, as well as questions from the audience.

Jonathan E. Meyer is General Counsel for the DHS

Moderated by Harvey Rishikof, Senior Counselor of the ABA Standing Committee on Law and National Security

References:

C-SPAN: "Homeland Security General Counsel on Agency Priorities". May 29th, 2024

"Homeland Threat Assessment 2024". The U.S. Department of Homeland Security Office of Intelligence and Analysis

H.R. 815, "Emergency National Security Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2024"

FISA, Section 230

The General Data Protection Regulation

(Part 2 of 2) Continuing our series on the intersection of sci-fi and national security, host Elisa is joined by Sunita Patel, Senior Assistant General Counsel for Product Security at Micron. Together they unpack the 1990's film, Total Recall, exploring themes of memory, identity, and reality. What can sci-fi tales like Total Recall teach us about real "brain-computer" projects like Nuralink? And do we have the right agency to oversee this type of technology, taking all of its benefits and risks into account?

Sunita Patel is the Senior Assistant General Counsel for Product Security at Micron

References:

Ramkumar, Amrith. “The Solar Breakthrough That Could Help the U.S. Compete with China.”The Wall Street Journal, 30 May 2024

Rivkin, David, and Lee Casey. Opinion | Israel, Hamas and the Law of War, 29 May 2024

Verhoeven, Paul. Total Recall. TriStar Pictures, 1990

We Can Remember It for You Wholesale, by Philip K. Dick

"Driving U.S. Innovation in Artificial Intelligence: A Roadmap for Artificial Intelligence Policy in the United States Senate." The Bipartisan Senate AI Working Group

“AI Governance Needs Sociotechnical Expertise.” Data & Society. 15 May 2024

Markoff, John. “Elon Musk’s Neuralink Wants ‘sewing Machine-like’ Robots to Wire Brains to the Internet.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 17 July 2019

H.R. 4346, Chips and Science Act

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)

S. 2103, Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2024

Continuing our series on the intersection of sci-fi and national security, host Elisa is joined by Sunita Patel, Senior Assistant General Counsel for Product Security at Micron. Together they unpack the 1990's film, Total Recall, exploring themes of memory, identity, and reality. What can sci-fi tales like Total Recall teach us about real "brain-computer" projects like Neuralink ? And how could technologies like Neuralink impact society in the future, to include on topics of national security, medical care, cybersecurity policymaking, and privacy?

Sunita Patel is the Senior Assistant General Counsel for Product Security at Micron

References:

Verhoeven, Paul. Total Recall. TriStar Pictures, 1990

We Can Remember It for You Wholesale, by Philip K. Dick

"Driving U.S. Innovation in Artificial Intelligence: A Roadmap for Artificial Intelligence Policy in the United States Senate." The Bipartisan Senate AI Working Group

“AI Governance Needs Sociotechnical Expertise.” Data & Society. 15 May 2024

Markoff, John. “Elon Musk’s Neuralink Wants ‘sewing Machine-like’ Robots to Wire Brains to the Internet.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 17 July 2019

H.R. 4346, Chips and Science Act

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)

S. 2103, Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2024