The twenty years since 9/11 have seen the growth of the "Surveillance State," with the proliferation of government surveillance following the enactment of the USA PATRIOT Act. On this episode, Debra Perlin is joined by Hasan Ali from Microsoft and Greg Nojeim from the Center for Democracy and Technology to discuss how increased surveillance has changed the way Americans think about privacy. They will also take a step back and ask not if we need more surveillance to deal with rising threats of domestic terrorism and public health crises, but if perhaps we already have too much.
Episode Host: Debra Perlin, Director of Policy and Program at ACS
Episode Guests:
Email the Show: Podcast@ACSLaw.org
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In the wake of 9/11, Congress passed the 2001 Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF). Only one member of Congress voted against it, Congresswoman Barbara Lee. Join Russ Feingold, the only senator to vote against the USA PATRIOT Act, for his interview with Congresswoman Lee about what happened behind the scenes in the lead up to the AUMF and what it is like to be a dissenter in Congress. Together, they discuss the legacy of the AUMF and what Congress should do moving forward to implement the lessons learned from giving the executive branch a "blank check" authorization for military force.
Episode Host: Russ Feingold, President of ACS
Episode Guest: Congresswoman Barbara Lee of the U.S. House of Representatives
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Email the Show: Podcast@ACSLaw.org
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On Part I of our Legal Legacy of 9/11 series, we focus specifically on domestic extremism and how we can avoid repeating the same post-9/11 mistakes when it comes to confronting this domestic threat. In the weeks and months following 9/11, the U.S. government adopted an aggressive preventative approach to international counterterrorism. This approach was seen through expansive new legislation, sweeping executive branch actions, and even with how the government was reorganized with counterterrorism as the defining priority. The 20th anniversary of 9/11 is an opportunity to examine what lessons we can learn from this post 9/11 approach in an effort to ensure we do not repeat the same mistakes going forward. Join Debra Perlin for her interview with Shirin Sinnar, from Stanford Law School, and Michael German, from the Brennan Center, for this look back at the legal legacy of 9/11.
Episode Host:
Debra Perlin, ACS Director of Policy and Program
Episode Guests:
Related Links:
Email the Show: Podcast@ACSLaw.org
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Since the U.S. Supreme Court decided Roe v. Wade in 1973, reproductive rights have never been more in peril than they are today, due to the make up of our highest court. How did we get here and what can be done to preserve abortion access in this new reality? Join Lindsay Langholz for her conversation with Julie Kay and Kathryn Kolbert, authors of the new book Controlling Women, as they discuss the evolution of abortion rights and break down the real forces at work in restricting access across the country. They answer the question, what can advocates and lawyers do to save reproductive rights?
Episode Host: Lindsay Langholz, ACS Director of Policy and Program
Episode Guests:
Related Links:
Email the Show: Podcast@ACSLaw.org
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In 2019, New Hampshire became the 21st state to repeal the death penalty. With growing momentum across the country to abolish the death penalty, are there lessons to be learned from the states that have recently done so? Join Jeanne Hruska for her interview with Renny Cushing, a NH Representative who led the effort to repeal the death penalty in his state, about how this genuinely purple state succeeded in repealing the death penalty after many fits and starts.
Episode Host: Jeanne Hruska, ACS, Senior Advisor for Communications and Strategy
Episode Guest: Renny Cushing, NH House of Representatives
Related links:
Email the Show: Podcast@ACSLaw.org
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The U.S. Census Bureau recently released data from the 2020 census, initiating the process of redrawing electoral maps in every state. This will be the first time that electoral maps are redrawn with the permission of the U.S. Supreme Court to gerrymander. What does this mean for our elections and for our democracy more broadly? Join Lindsay Langholz for her interview with Michael Li (李之樸), Senior Counsel at the Brennan Center, to answer these and other pressing questions about the census and redistricting.
Episode Host: Lindsay Langholz, Director of Policy and Program
Episode Guest:
Link: "Gerrymandering Explained," by Julia Kirschenbaum and Michael Li
Email the Show: Podcast@ACSLaw.org
Technical production provided by Flint Stone Media
