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Articles by Edgar Chen
Weighing dynamic availability and consumption for Twitch recommendations
Twitch is a community driven live streaming video service which uses recommendations trained on implicit feedback data. While this data is available in large quantities, it is subject to various biases and shortcomings. In particular, Twitch watch history data is heavily affected by the unpredictable and irregular behavior of users and streams going online and offline.
‘Wong Kim Ark’ Does Not Limit Birthright Citizenship
It was no coincidence that President Donald Trump announced on the campaign trail that he would seek to end birthright citizenship via executive order on the heels of the 125th anniversary of the Supreme Court’s decision in United States v. Wong Kim Ark.
'Good Moral Character?' Holding Trump to the Same Standards as the Immigrants He Vilifies
From the moment Donald Trump descended his gilded escalator to launch his first presidential campaign in 2015, impugning immigrants as criminals has been the centerpiece of his political identity. “They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists,” he said that day. This year, “migrant crime” has become a cornerstone of Trump’s campaign.
With New "Alien Land Laws" Asian Immigrants Are Once Again Targeted by Real Estate Bans
In Congress and in statehouses throughout the United States, lawmakers continue to introduce legislation designed to bar citizens of foreign adversaries from being able to purchase real property. Ostensibly aimed at preventing a short list of enemy governments from controlling the American food supply or spying on military facilities, these laws’ most cited rationale is fear of Chinese Communist Party (CCP) influence on American soil.
How DOJ Could Prosecute Russians for Torture and Other War Crimes, and How Congress Can Expand Its Remit
Last week, the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Europe, Energy, the Environment, and Cyber held a congressional hearing entitled, “Early Signs of War Crimes and Human Rights Abuses Committed by the Russian Military During the Full-Scale Invasion of Ukraine.” The Subcommittee heard from a panel of war crimes experts who focused on the horrors of widespread and indiscriminate shelling of civilians, deployment of cluster munitions, dumb bombs, and other targeting issues.
Як Міністерство юстиції може переслідувати росіян за воєнні злочини і як Конгрес може розширити свої повноваження
(This article is also available in English here. Переклад статті здійснений завдяки Мар’яна Антонович.) Минулого тижня підкомітет із закордонних справ Палати представників з питань Європи, енергетики, довкілля та кібербезпеки провів засідання в Конгресі під назвою «Перші ознаки воєнних злочинів і порушень прав людини, вчинених російськими військовими під час повномасштабного вторгнення в Україну».
Race to the Top Brass
Senators and members of Congress disproportionately nominate White students to the United States’ competitive military academies and, thus, continue to cultivate a disproportionately White (and male) military leadership, according to a new report.
The Next Attorney General’s Allegiance Must Be to the Rule of Law
As President-Elect Joe Biden assembles a Cabinet, one of his most consequential decisions will be to choose the man or woman who will serve as the nation’s 85th attorney general.
Justifying Absolute Political Control over DOJ, Barr Promotes Myth of Unaccountable Career Prosecutor
During a Constitution Day speech at Hillsdale College in Michigan last week, Attorney General William Barr extolled political influence over Department of Justice prosecutions as an essential democratic check and balance against the supposed tyranny of an unelected permanent bureaucracy.
Déjà Vu All Over Again: Racial Disparity in the Military Justice System
Defense Secretary Mark Esper recently came to the realization that, “the murder of George Floyd was a wake-up call …. We know we’re not immune to what is happening in broader society, that society that we serve.” Despite his characterization of this moment in American race relations as a “wake-up call,” the United States armed forces have been mired in a maddening loop of racial disparity with respect to its own military justice system for over half a century.
Principle Over Pretext: The Supreme Court Isn’t Buying What Wilbur Ross Is Selling
In a ruling that has surprised many legal observers, the Supreme Court, in a 5-4 opinion by Chief Justice John Roberts, dealt the Trump administration a major setback to its efforts to impose a citizenship question on the 2020 Census by sustaining a lower court’s order to remand the issue back to the Commerce Department for further proceedings.
Census 2020: Don't get mad, get counted
The Supreme Court will imminently decide on whether to uphold the Trump administration's decision to ask all respondents of the 2020 Census, “Is this person a citizen of the United States?” New evidence has recently come to light, suggesting the political and racial motivations behind the question, which will likely frighten non-citizens, especially Hispanics, from responding. The result would lead to an inaccurate count with potentially devastating consequences for the nation's future.
The Barr-Nadler Subpoena Standoff: Still Room for Accommodation?
Tensions continue to escalate in the inter-branch standoff over unfettered access to the Mueller report and its underlying evidence and related legal materials. On Wednesday, the House Judiciary Committee voted along party lines to hold Attorney General William Barr in contempt of Congress for failing to comply with the subpoena it issued on April 18. The resulting headlines focused on a contempt battle over release of the “full Mueller report,” but this is not where the real fight lies.
Recap of Recent Pieces on Just Security (April 29-May 3)
We are a forum on law, rights, and U.S. national security. You can follow on Twitter @just_security
The Failures of the Mueller’s Report Campaign Finance Analysis
Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s report contains several surprises, most famously in declining to determine whether the President committed obstruction of justice. The Special Counsel does, however, engage in an extensive discussion of the facts and the law on that and other issues within his remit. On the constitutional law issues, he confronts and methodically refutes the claim advanced by the President’s legal team that, in the exercise of Article II authority, corrupt motive is irrelevant.
Trump’s `Fake News’ Tirades Embolden Arab Leaders’ Crackdowns
It’s World Press Freedom Day today, but attacks against journalists and news outlets based on allegations of “fake news” continue to spread like wildfire across the globe. And so-called “anti-fake news” legislation has flourished in recent years — Russian President Vladimir Putin signed one of the most recent measures in March. At the same time, President Donald Trump’s discourse on fake news has created a dangerous environment, and not only for journalists working in the United States.
The Early Edition: May 3, 2019
Signup to receive the Early Edition in your inbox here. Before the start of business, Just Security provides a curated summary of up-to-the-minute developments at home and abroad. Here’s today’s news.
Getting Past the Veto on Ending Yemen War: How Congress' Next Move Can Succeed
On Thursday, Congress failed to override President Trump’s veto of bipartisan legislation that had directed him to remove U.S. armed forces from hostilities in Yemen’s civil war. Congress has other paths it can now take, over the short and long term, to achieve the same goals.
Amid the Nadler-Barr Standoff: Some History of Struggles Over Hearing Processes
Attorney General William Barr refused to appear before the House Judiciary Committee at its hearing today on the Mueller Report, further escalating the battle between the executive and legislative branches. The Attorney General objected principally to the Majority’s proposed format of allowing an additional hour of inquiry (divided equally between the parties), when Committee staffers would also be allowed to question the Attorney General.
The U.S. Must Forcefully Oppose Blanket Amnesty for Civil War Atrocities in Guatemala
“All the people have disappeared.” So reads a declassified cable from the U.S. Embassy in Guatemala City, dated Dec. 28, 1982. The subject was an incident that occurred just weeks before, on or about Dec. 6, 1982, in the hamlet of Dos Erres in the northern panhandle of Guatemala, during the country’s nearly four-decade civil war.
EU ‘Terrorist Content’ Proposal Sets Dire Example for Free Speech Online
Countries around the world are seeking to exert more control over content on the internet – and, by extension, their citizens. Europe, unfortunately, is providing them with a blueprint. In two recent examples, overbroad regulations incentivize social media platforms to remove speech first and ask questions later.
The Early Edition: March 5, 2019
Signup to receive the Early Edition in your inbox here. Before the start of business, Just Security provides a curated summary of up-to-the-minute developments at home and abroad. Here’s today’s news.
Mueller Wasn’t Appointed Pursuant to the DOJ Regs (and other assorted flaws in the Manafort suit)
Paul Manafort filed a two-count suit yesterday against Acting Attorney General Rod Rosenstein and Special Counsel Robert Mueller. Count Two challenges Special Counsel Mueller’s investigation of matters involving Manafort, in particular. Count One is a more fundamental and comprehensive challenge to the scope of the authority that Rosenstein conferred upon Mueller in the first instance.
Trump Told Cohen to Lie to Congress About “Collusion” in General-Not just the Moscow Tower deal
Analysts are still picking through all the crimes in which Michael Cohen directly implicated his former boss, President Donald Trump. Among the most significant crimes are those offences that were part of the articles of impeachment written for prior presidents. That historically notorious list includes acts of suborning perjury and obstructing justice, which can arise from either directing or encouraging a person to lie to federal authorities.
Counterterrorism and Homeland Security Are Not the Same Thing
Counterterrorism and homeland security are not the same thing. It is not surprising though that the two get intertwined and conflated. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was, after-all, created in the wake of the horrible terrorist attacks on 9/11. The twenty-two agencies that were brought together into what became DHS were, in part, tasked to keep America safe.
The Early Edition: March 4, 2019
Signup to receive the Early Edition in your inbox here. Before the start of business, Just Security provides a curated summary of up-to-the-minute developments at home and abroad. Here’s today’s news. The KOREAN PENINSULA The U.S. and South Korea have canceled major war games in order to “support diplomatic efforts” with the North.
Recap of Recent Pieces on Just Security (Feb 23-March 2)
We are a forum on law, rights, and U.S. national security. You can follow on Twitter @just_security
Updates to The Trump-Russia Timeline
We hope readers are benefiting from the interactive The Trump-Russia Timeline, which we are hosting thanks to the work of attorney Steven J. Harper and producers at BillMoyers.com. The following list includes information that has most recently been entered into the Timeline. To use the interactive Timeline, just click here. ENTRIES THROUGH FEB. 27, 2019 EARLY DEC. 2016: Russians Arrest Intelligence Officers and Cybersecurity Experts for Treason (revision of previous entry) FEB.
Norms Watch: Damage to Democracy and Rule of Law in February 2019
Welcome to the latest installment of Norms Watch, our series tracking the flouting of democratic norms by the Trump administration and the erosion those norms suffer as a result. This is our collection of the most significant breaks with democratic traditions that occurred in February 2019. Declaring a national emergency as an end-run around Congress President Donald Trump declared a national emergency on Feb.
National Security at the United Nations This Week
Editors’ Note: This is the latest in Just Security’s weekly series keeping readers up to date on developments at the United Nations at the intersection of national security, human rights, and the rule of law.
The Missing Khashoggi Report: A President Can’t Choose to “Decline” His Constitutional Role to Accommodate Congressional Oversight
It has now been 21 days and counting since President Trump blew the deadline for compliance with the reporting provisions of the Global Magnitsky Act with respect to the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
Unpacking (Some of) the Legal Issues Surrounding Hoda Muthana
Even before the President weighed in on Twitter, there’s been substantial discussion about the fate of so-called “ISIS bride” Hoda Muthana, and her apparent desire to return to the United States from Syria.
The president owes our nation’s federal civil servants far more than missed paychecks
After finally relenting to reopen the government in the wake of the longest shutdown in the nation’s history, president Trump thanked federal employees for their “extraordinary devotion,” calling them “fantastic people” and “incredible patriots.” Of their hardship, he stated, “Many of you have suffered far greater than anyone but your families would know or understand.” If only the president knew or understood the true extent of their sacrifice.
The Hidden Danger of User-Generated Evidence for International Criminal Justice
In the summer of 2017, judges at the International Criminal Court (ICC) took a remarkable step. For the first time, they issued an arrest warrant based primarily on video footage that a user posted to Facebook. It was a harbinger of the 21st Century forms of evidence that will soon flow into international courtrooms. The future of international evidence collection is no longer primarily in the hands of investigators employed by a Hague-based court.
Why It May Not Matter If BuzzFeed Got It Wrong: “Encouraging” Perjury is Also a Crime
Assume that the BuzzFeed report got it wrong and that President Donald Trump did not direct his then-personal attorney Michael Cohen to lie to Congress. As a matter of law, what would result if President Trump instead only encouraged Cohen to lie to Congress? There’s evidence in the public record that at least points toward a conclusion that’s what President Trump did–evidence that principally includes court documents filed by Cohen’s attorneys and the Special Counsel.
The Case for Legislative Security Clearance Reform
One thing everyone can agree on is that President Donald Trump is a master at exposing the cracks in our political and legal landscape, whether he intends to or not. He refuses to be bound by custom, no matter how deep-rooted, and this tendency has never been clearer than in the realm of security clearances, where he is just now starting to grasp the extent of his virtually unchallenged authority.
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