Home > News > Kal Raustiala on the Constitution Abroad

Kal Raustiala on the Constitution Abroad

Click here to view video clips of Burkle Center Director Kal Raustiala as his discusses topics from his upcoming book, "Does the Constitution Follow the Flag? The Evolution of Territoriality in American Law."

These videos are a product of UCLA Media Relations.

As President Obama works to fulfill his campaign promise to close the U.S. detention camp at Guantanamo Bay, questions arise: Where will these prisoners, held for so long without trial or legal recourse, go, and where do they belong? If the U.S. transfers prisoners to Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan, would they exist in the same legal limbo as in Guantanamo? Would a facility for these detainees on U.S. soil be unconstitutional? By transferring prisoners to another offshore prison, is the Obama administration asserting any significant change in U.S. policy?

Why is it that foreigners can be detained by the U.S. without due process in non-U.S. territory? Where do laws about territorial legal limits come from, and how are they changing, given globalization and an expanding American empire?

UCLA international relations expert Kal Raustiala can help make sense of some of the issues the Obama administration is grappling with. Raustiala will soon release his new book, "Does the Constitution Follow the Flag? The Evolution of Territoriality in American Law." The below videos offer a sneek peek into the topics discussed in his book.

===========================================================

In this video, Raustiala discusses territorial legal limits and why foreigners can be detained by the U.S. without due process in non-U.S. territory.

In this video, Raustiala discusses questions related to the release or transfer of Quantanamo Bay detainees as well as the territorial legal limits of the War on Terror.

Published: Monday, May 11, 2009