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Days of DOGE: A Civitas Outlook Symposium
Robert Beschel, Charlie Cooke, Robert Delahunty, and Yuval Levin analyze DOGE.
The intervention of the Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) throughout the federal government has ignited intense controversy along intersecting lines of constitutional, policy, and cultural disputes. Much of the fracas is happening within a federal government where Congress no longer reliably flexes its constitutional responsibilities. Accordingly, the judicial and executive branches frequently attempt to snatch greater levels of legitimacy and government functionality in the face of a moribund Congress. On one level, valuable information is emerging from DOGE’s efforts regarding eccentric spending programs, waste, and fraud. However, there are also constitutional concerns about DOGE’s irresponsible use of power within the executive branch while attempting to root out various forms of dysfunctional government. What should a constitutionally minded reformer think about these events?
Civitas Outlook asked Robert Beschel, Charlie Cooke, Robert Delahunty, and Yuval Levin to analyze DOGE and its implications.
Robert Beschel: DOGE is a Dodge
Charlie Cooke: The Hard Limits on DOGE
Robert Delahunty: DOGE & USAID
Yuval Levin: Making DOGE Constitutional
Constitutionalism
Amicus Brief: Hon. William P. Barr and Hon. Michael B. Mukasey in Support of Petitioners
Former AGs Barr and Mukasey Cite Civitas in a SCOTUS Brief
Rational Judicial Review: Constitutions as Power-sharing Agreements, Secession, and the Problem of Dred Scott
Judicial review and originalism serve as valuable commitment mechanisms to enforce future compliance with a political bargain.
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State Courts Can’t Run Foreign Policy
Suncor is also a golden opportunity for the justices to stop local officials from interfering with an industry critical to foreign and national-security policy.
Supreme Court Justly Skeptical of Trump Administration’s Anti-Birthright Citizenship Executive Order
President Trump appears due for another disappointment.
The Arc of Justice Alito
Samuel Alito will go down in history as a consequential Supreme Court justice. His life story is emblematic of the forces that motivated and shaped the conservative legal movement, which is now the dominant force in American law.
