Brian Finucane
@bcfinucane.bsky.social
Senior Adviser, US Program, International Crisis Group. Editor at Just Security. Non-Resident Senior Fellow at Reiss Center on Law and Security at NYU Law. Ex State Dept Lawyer. War Powers| Use of Force| Counterterrorism| Law of War| War Crimes| Arms Sales
Pinned
Brian Finucane
@bcfinucane.bsky.social
· Sep 19
Asserting a License to Kill: Why the Caribbean Strike is a Dangerous Departure from the “War on Terror”
An absence of credible legal basis for the Caribbean strike suggests the Trump admin is asserting a prerogative to kill outside the law.
www.justsecurity.org
My analysis in @justsecurity.org on Trump's asserted license to kill. 2/n
www.justsecurity.org/120568/carib...
www.justsecurity.org/120568/carib...
An administration steadfast in its opposition to the rule of law.
The Trump admin will tear down the entire human rights system--and treat the most respected jurists like terrorists--to protect Israel's leaders from accountability for what essentially the whole world recognizes to be terrible crimes. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
November 26, 2025 at 1:24 PM
An administration steadfast in its opposition to the rule of law.
If this secret OLC memo blessing the boat strikes is so convincing, why won’t the administration release it?
More reporting indicating OLC is relying on fabricated armed conflicts + concept of “war sustaining” targets to justify the killing spree at sea.
If no war, then no war sustaining targets.
And secret legal justification not the same a Trump admin rationale.
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
If no war, then no war sustaining targets.
And secret legal justification not the same a Trump admin rationale.
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
US justice department memo about boat strikes diverges from Trump narrative
Exclusive: Officials frame strikes as self-defense against violence, without naming aggressor, while Trump claims they’re to stop US overdose deaths
www.theguardian.com
November 26, 2025 at 12:56 PM
If this secret OLC memo blessing the boat strikes is so convincing, why won’t the administration release it?
More reporting indicating OLC is relying on fabricated armed conflicts + concept of “war sustaining” targets to justify the killing spree at sea.
If no war, then no war sustaining targets.
And secret legal justification not the same a Trump admin rationale.
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
If no war, then no war sustaining targets.
And secret legal justification not the same a Trump admin rationale.
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
US justice department memo about boat strikes diverges from Trump narrative
Exclusive: Officials frame strikes as self-defense against violence, without naming aggressor, while Trump claims they’re to stop US overdose deaths
www.theguardian.com
November 26, 2025 at 3:22 AM
More reporting indicating OLC is relying on fabricated armed conflicts + concept of “war sustaining” targets to justify the killing spree at sea.
If no war, then no war sustaining targets.
And secret legal justification not the same a Trump admin rationale.
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
If no war, then no war sustaining targets.
And secret legal justification not the same a Trump admin rationale.
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
Key point from Congressman Himes:
The through line for so many of the administration’s actions is performance.
Reality TV administration.
The through line for so many of the administration’s actions is performance.
Reality TV administration.
Himes: "In combination with the Russia plan and the lethal strikes on drug boats, what the world is seeing is that the Trump administration is purely performative. It doesn't matter what really happens so long as in the moment when you're very mad at Mark Kelly, you threaten to Court-martial him."
November 26, 2025 at 3:03 AM
Key point from Congressman Himes:
The through line for so many of the administration’s actions is performance.
Reality TV administration.
The through line for so many of the administration’s actions is performance.
Reality TV administration.
“The calculation for Maduro is that he will always be safer here than anywhere else,” said Phil Gunson, an analyst in Caracas for the International Crisis Group, which works to prevent violent conflict in Venezuela.”
www.wsj.com/world/americ...
www.wsj.com/world/americ...
The Reason Venezuela’s Maduro Won’t Resign Peacefully
Unlike past dictators, the South American strongman has few options to enjoy an easy life in exile.
www.wsj.com
November 26, 2025 at 2:58 AM
“The calculation for Maduro is that he will always be safer here than anywhere else,” said Phil Gunson, an analyst in Caracas for the International Crisis Group, which works to prevent violent conflict in Venezuela.”
www.wsj.com/world/americ...
www.wsj.com/world/americ...
My contribution to the thanksgiving food discourse:
Had a childhood friend whose family had raccoon for thanksgiving rather than turkey (this was rural Appalachia).
My friend recommended against it.
Had a childhood friend whose family had raccoon for thanksgiving rather than turkey (this was rural Appalachia).
My friend recommended against it.
November 26, 2025 at 2:42 AM
My contribution to the thanksgiving food discourse:
Had a childhood friend whose family had raccoon for thanksgiving rather than turkey (this was rural Appalachia).
My friend recommended against it.
Had a childhood friend whose family had raccoon for thanksgiving rather than turkey (this was rural Appalachia).
My friend recommended against it.
So, ordering enforced disappearance—an international crime.
BREAKING:
“After receiving that legal advice, Secretary Noem directed that the AEA detainees who had been removed from the United States before the Court’s order could be transferred to the custody of El Salvador. “
“After receiving that legal advice, Secretary Noem directed that the AEA detainees who had been removed from the United States before the Court’s order could be transferred to the custody of El Salvador. “
November 26, 2025 at 2:00 AM
So, ordering enforced disappearance—an international crime.
That guy talking to the @economist.com sounds familiar.
November 26, 2025 at 1:52 AM
That guy talking to the @economist.com sounds familiar.
Undermining the prohibition against territorial conquest—as the Trump administration is flirting with regarding Ukraine—also imperils the president’s own longstanding interest in nuclear nonproliferation.
More states will want the ultimate insurance policy.
www.justsecurity.org/109537/upend...
More states will want the ultimate insurance policy.
www.justsecurity.org/109537/upend...
Upending the International Order
Through both word and deed, President Trump has been aggressively undermining the rule of law internationally.
www.justsecurity.org
November 26, 2025 at 1:37 AM
Undermining the prohibition against territorial conquest—as the Trump administration is flirting with regarding Ukraine—also imperils the president’s own longstanding interest in nuclear nonproliferation.
More states will want the ultimate insurance policy.
www.justsecurity.org/109537/upend...
More states will want the ultimate insurance policy.
www.justsecurity.org/109537/upend...
Discovered today that somehow I am the proud owner of a Lite-Brite.
Burt Meyer, prolific toymaker who invented Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots and Lite-Brite, dies at 99.
Burt Meyer, prolific toymaker who invented Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots and Lite-Brite, dies at 99
Burt Meyer's creations arrived in the postwar boom, when plastic molding and mass production transformed how American kids played.
cbsn.ws
November 26, 2025 at 1:01 AM
Discovered today that somehow I am the proud owner of a Lite-Brite.
Government running like a well-oiled machine.
The national security adviser is supposed to oversee policy coordination. The secretary of State is supposed to lead on diplomatic negotiations. In theory, neither would be the clean-up crew, because they’re supposed to prevent the mess from happening in the first place.
November 26, 2025 at 12:30 AM
Government running like a well-oiled machine.
Wut.
Going to need a fact check from some endurance athletes.
“He does not get regular exercise, in part because he has a long-held theory that people are born with a finite amount of energy and that vigorous activity can deplete that reserve, like a battery.”
Going to need a fact check from some endurance athletes.
“He does not get regular exercise, in part because he has a long-held theory that people are born with a finite amount of energy and that vigorous activity can deplete that reserve, like a battery.”
November 26, 2025 at 12:26 AM
Wut.
Going to need a fact check from some endurance athletes.
“He does not get regular exercise, in part because he has a long-held theory that people are born with a finite amount of energy and that vigorous activity can deplete that reserve, like a battery.”
Going to need a fact check from some endurance athletes.
“He does not get regular exercise, in part because he has a long-held theory that people are born with a finite amount of energy and that vigorous activity can deplete that reserve, like a battery.”
Glad to see this from Senator Murkowski.
This should not be a partisan issue.
This should not be a partisan issue.
November 25, 2025 at 11:53 PM
Glad to see this from Senator Murkowski.
This should not be a partisan issue.
This should not be a partisan issue.
As I see the Secretary of Defense is referring some "potentially unlawful conduct" to the Secretary of the Navy, I would also like to bring some potentially unlawful conduct to the attention of Pentagon leadership.
www.justsecurity.org/120568/carib...
www.justsecurity.org/120568/carib...
Asserting a License to Kill: Why the Caribbean Strike is a Dangerous Departure from the “War on Terror”
An absence of credible legal basis for the Caribbean strike suggests the Trump admin is asserting a prerogative to kill outside the law.
www.justsecurity.org
November 25, 2025 at 10:49 PM
As I see the Secretary of Defense is referring some "potentially unlawful conduct" to the Secretary of the Navy, I would also like to bring some potentially unlawful conduct to the attention of Pentagon leadership.
www.justsecurity.org/120568/carib...
www.justsecurity.org/120568/carib...
Reposted by Brian Finucane
Pleased to speak with @joshuakeating.bsky.social of @vox.com.
“The concern is that what they’re doing is dressing up regime change under the guise of counterterrorism and counternarcotics.”
www.vox.com/politics/470...
“The concern is that what they’re doing is dressing up regime change under the guise of counterterrorism and counternarcotics.”
www.vox.com/politics/470...
How Trump changed what “terrorism” means
Venezuela and the new war on terror, explained.
www.vox.com
November 25, 2025 at 3:35 PM
Pleased to speak with @joshuakeating.bsky.social of @vox.com.
“The concern is that what they’re doing is dressing up regime change under the guise of counterterrorism and counternarcotics.”
www.vox.com/politics/470...
“The concern is that what they’re doing is dressing up regime change under the guise of counterterrorism and counternarcotics.”
www.vox.com/politics/470...
Reposted by Brian Finucane
For Spanish speakers, I shared some thoughts on the recent foreign terrorist organization designation of the “Cartel de los Soles.”
www.wradio.com.co/ampsource/20...
www.wradio.com.co/ampsource/20...
“No es normal que EE.UU. designe una entidad criminal como una organización terrorista”: abogado
Brian Finucane, exabogado del Departamento de Estado de Estados Unidos, se refirió en La W a la designación del Cartel de los Soles como organización terrorista.
www.wradio.com.co
November 25, 2025 at 7:48 PM
For Spanish speakers, I shared some thoughts on the recent foreign terrorist organization designation of the “Cartel de los Soles.”
www.wradio.com.co/ampsource/20...
www.wradio.com.co/ampsource/20...
In the criminal justice system there are checks on executive branch lawlessness like grand juries and judges.
Not so much inside the executive branch where the word of POTUS or the yes men at OLC is supposedly “law.”
Hence the premeditated maritime killing.
Not so much inside the executive branch where the word of POTUS or the yes men at OLC is supposedly “law.”
Hence the premeditated maritime killing.
Just looking at the Comey indictment mess, would you wager that this same DOJ has a solid legal justification for the killing spree at sea?
November 25, 2025 at 9:55 PM
In the criminal justice system there are checks on executive branch lawlessness like grand juries and judges.
Not so much inside the executive branch where the word of POTUS or the yes men at OLC is supposedly “law.”
Hence the premeditated maritime killing.
Not so much inside the executive branch where the word of POTUS or the yes men at OLC is supposedly “law.”
Hence the premeditated maritime killing.
Just looking at the Comey indictment mess, would you wager that this same DOJ has a solid legal justification for the killing spree at sea?
November 25, 2025 at 9:45 PM
Just looking at the Comey indictment mess, would you wager that this same DOJ has a solid legal justification for the killing spree at sea?
Deploying counterterrorism tools against domestic political opponents.
Last night, the FBI's Counterterrorism Division appeared to open an inquiry into me in response to a video President Trump did not like.
November 25, 2025 at 7:52 PM
Deploying counterterrorism tools against domestic political opponents.
For Spanish speakers, I shared some thoughts on the recent foreign terrorist organization designation of the “Cartel de los Soles.”
www.wradio.com.co/ampsource/20...
www.wradio.com.co/ampsource/20...
“No es normal que EE.UU. designe una entidad criminal como una organización terrorista”: abogado
Brian Finucane, exabogado del Departamento de Estado de Estados Unidos, se refirió en La W a la designación del Cartel de los Soles como organización terrorista.
www.wradio.com.co
November 25, 2025 at 7:48 PM
For Spanish speakers, I shared some thoughts on the recent foreign terrorist organization designation of the “Cartel de los Soles.”
www.wradio.com.co/ampsource/20...
www.wradio.com.co/ampsource/20...
Reposted by Brian Finucane
🔴 We are hiring a Senior Analyst focusing on Global Order and Peacemaking to join our team.
📍 Preferably in any of our office locations
Learn more and apply here: jobs.crisisgroup.org/o/analyst-gl...
📍 Preferably in any of our office locations
Learn more and apply here: jobs.crisisgroup.org/o/analyst-gl...
November 25, 2025 at 4:10 PM
🔴 We are hiring a Senior Analyst focusing on Global Order and Peacemaking to join our team.
📍 Preferably in any of our office locations
Learn more and apply here: jobs.crisisgroup.org/o/analyst-gl...
📍 Preferably in any of our office locations
Learn more and apply here: jobs.crisisgroup.org/o/analyst-gl...
Pleased to speak with @joshuakeating.bsky.social of @vox.com.
“The concern is that what they’re doing is dressing up regime change under the guise of counterterrorism and counternarcotics.”
www.vox.com/politics/470...
“The concern is that what they’re doing is dressing up regime change under the guise of counterterrorism and counternarcotics.”
www.vox.com/politics/470...
How Trump changed what “terrorism” means
Venezuela and the new war on terror, explained.
www.vox.com
November 25, 2025 at 3:35 PM
Pleased to speak with @joshuakeating.bsky.social of @vox.com.
“The concern is that what they’re doing is dressing up regime change under the guise of counterterrorism and counternarcotics.”
www.vox.com/politics/470...
“The concern is that what they’re doing is dressing up regime change under the guise of counterterrorism and counternarcotics.”
www.vox.com/politics/470...
The non-unitary executive.
One man -- Marco Rubio -- serves this country as both National Security Adviser and Secretary of State.
And he was nowhere near the drafting of that Ukraine 'peace plan,' which was instead devised by the president's real-estate buddy and his son-in-law.
🎁
www.wsj.com/world/russia...
And he was nowhere near the drafting of that Ukraine 'peace plan,' which was instead devised by the president's real-estate buddy and his son-in-law.
🎁
www.wsj.com/world/russia...
November 25, 2025 at 2:49 PM
The non-unitary executive.
Terrible.
Drove by this mine just after the accident.
And note the owner of the mine.
www.weku.org/the-commonwe...
Drove by this mine just after the accident.
And note the owner of the mine.
www.weku.org/the-commonwe...
Coal miner killed in West Virginia was pinned by mine supply car, report says
A report from the federal government reveals more details about how a coal miner died in West Virginia earlier this month.
www.weku.org
November 25, 2025 at 2:27 PM
Terrible.
Drove by this mine just after the accident.
And note the owner of the mine.
www.weku.org/the-commonwe...
Drove by this mine just after the accident.
And note the owner of the mine.
www.weku.org/the-commonwe...
One aspect of the lawful orders discussion boils down to this:
Is premeditated killing lawful if the executive branch manufactures a non-existent armed conflict and then declares by fiat and without a factual basis that certain people are "combatants" and certain objects are "military objectives?"
Is premeditated killing lawful if the executive branch manufactures a non-existent armed conflict and then declares by fiat and without a factual basis that certain people are "combatants" and certain objects are "military objectives?"
November 25, 2025 at 2:23 PM
One aspect of the lawful orders discussion boils down to this:
Is premeditated killing lawful if the executive branch manufactures a non-existent armed conflict and then declares by fiat and without a factual basis that certain people are "combatants" and certain objects are "military objectives?"
Is premeditated killing lawful if the executive branch manufactures a non-existent armed conflict and then declares by fiat and without a factual basis that certain people are "combatants" and certain objects are "military objectives?"