Democracy & Rule of Law
Democratic Backsliding & Solutions
127 Articles
U.S. Lifts Sanctions on Putin-Backed Bosnian Serb Separatist Leader
The Trump administration's sanctions removal for Bosnian Serb separatist Milorad Dodik precedes a Russia-Led U.N. Security Council meeting.
The $550 Billion Shadow Budget: Trump’s Japan Deal and the Disappearing Appropriations Clause
The deal circumvents the Appropriations Clause and congressional safeguards designed to enforce it, creating a system answerable only to the White House.
Post-Conflict Election in the Southern Philippines Postponed for Third Time: Is Peace Unraveling?
A third postponement of elections for the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao endangers a peace accord that ended a brutal war.
Distorted Laws on “Foreign Agents” Threaten Democracy: Mobilizing a Response
Civil society can share knowledge, boost public support, and build coalitions to resist the spread of autocratic "foreign agents" laws.
Attacks on U.S. Legal Profession Reflect Global Slide in Countries It Once Aided
Political pressures like those used to silence legal professionals and undermine rule of law in Europe and Eurasia echo patterns of the autocratic playbook.
After Another Sham Election in Georgia, the Country’s Citizens Persist
Georgians will fight for their democracy, as the ruling party now becomes one of the world's many paranoid, insecure dictatorships that know their days are numbered.
Assassinations in America: How Political Violence Became Personal
Americans can no longer turn to their political leadership to avert the catastrophe of political violence.
Repression as Rescue: The Authoritarian Logic of Trump’s Early Executive Orders
The rhetorical threats Trump employed during his campaign are directly echoed in the titles and content of his second-term EOs.
Trump’s Use of Consent Decrees to Dismantle Policy
The administration has turned consent decrees into a deregulatory weapon, and courts are beginning to confront the limits of that strategy.
Brazil’s Digital Sovereignty Is Under Attack: How Courts, Platforms, and Constitutional Law Are Redefining Democracy Online
At the heart of Brazil’s approach to digital constitutionalism is a legal framework that treats platform governance as essential to democracy.
The Human Costs of Systemic Corruption
When core functions of the state become warped into tools of personal enrichment or political control, ordinary people suffer. The poor and marginalized are hit hardest.
Hard to Kill: The Transnational Survival of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act
The global anti-corruption regime that the United States pioneered over many decades is bigger than any one country or regime