Secret Law and the Threat to Democratic Government
“The notion of secret law has been described in court opinions and law treatises as ‘repugnant’ and ‘an abomination’,” observed Sen. Russ Feingold. “It is a basic tenet of democracy that the people have a right to know the law.”
“But the law that applies in this country is determined not only by statutes and regulations, but also by the controlling interpretations of courts and, in some cases, the executive branch. More and more, this body of executive and judicial law is being kept secret from Congress as well,” he said.
To probe that subject, Sen. Feingold’s subcommittee of the Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing last April 30, the full record of which has just been published. See “Secret Law and the Threat to Democratic and Accountable Government.”
The hearing volume includes newly published responses (pdf) to questions for the record from John P. Elwood of the Justice Department Office of Legal Counsel, Prof. Dawn E. Johnsen, who is now working with the Obama transition team, former ISOO director J. William Leonard, myself, and others.
Good information sources, like collections, must be available and maintained if companies are going to successfully implement the vision of AI for science expressed by their marketing and executives.
Let’s see what rules we can rewrite and beliefs we can reset: a few digital service sacred cows are long overdue to be put out to pasture.
Nestled in the cuts and investments of interest to the S&T community is a more complex story of how the administration is approaching the practice of science diplomacy.
Surprise! It’s a double album drop with the release of both the President’s Budget Request (PBR to us, not Pabst Blue Ribbon) and the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Budget Justification for Fiscal Year 2027 (FY27) last Friday.