On Fri, Jan 16, 2026 at 11:07 AM National Security Archive <[email protected]> wrote:
> 1989 Legal Memos Said President Had “Inherent Constitutional Authority” to > Act Unilaterally and “Contravene Customary International > Law” > > > > > > > Imperial Prerogative: How the Panama Invasion and the “Barr Doctrine” Set > the Stage for the Maduro “Snatch” Operation > > <https://default.salsalabs.org/Taa2b4836-0568-4320-abb0-694b5d431882/12238b38-d371-4bc9-b2b2-ab5a3bdb144f> > 1989 legal memos said President had “inherent constitutional authority” to > act unilaterally and “contravene customary international law” CIA warned > that Noriega could produce “credible new evidence...that would incriminate > US government officials in the Iran-Contra affair” > > *Washington, D.C., January 16, 2026* - The Justice Department official > who wrote the legal opinion determining that President Donald Trump had the > constitutional authority to “unilaterally order” the “extraordinary > rendition” of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro relied heavily on secret > legal architecture authored 36 years ago by William P. Barr to justify the > U.S. invasion of Panama, according to declassified documents uncovered by > the National Security Archive. These include secret White House memos, > highly classified intelligence reports, and sensitive legal opinions > recently discovered among the George H. W. Bush presidential papers and > that were published today for the first time by the Archive. > > In 1989, Barr, who was then Assistant Attorney General for the Office of > Legal Counsel (OLC), wrote at least five legal opinions—at least two of > which remain classified—related to U.S. efforts to remove Panamanian > strongman Manuel Noriega from power. Chief among them was a finding that > the President had the “inherent constitutional authority” to arrest > individuals abroad “even if those actions contravene customary > international law” and “even if they contravene unexecuted treaties or > treaty provisions, such as Article 2(4) of the United Nations Charter,” > which bars threats and use of force among member states except in > self-defense. Barr later served as U.S. Attorney General during Trump’s > first term and authorized the original U.S. indictment of Maduro in 2020. > > On December 23, 2025, Assistant Attorney General T. Elliot Gaiser cited > two of those Barr opinions, posted today by the Archive, in determining > that the President can use the military for law enforcement purposes > without regard to international law and without congressional > authorization. While the Gaiser opinion is heavily redacted, context > suggests that he also relied on a third, still classified, opinion, also > written by Barr in 1989, in determining that the inadvertent killing of a > head of state during a rendition operation does not carry a significant > legal risk. > > In this Electronic Briefing Book, National Security Archive research > fellow Dr. Arturo Jimenez-Bacardi takes a detailed look at the U.S. > decision-making process in the runup to the 1989 U.S. invasion of Panama, > focusing on Barr’s pivotal 1989 legal opinions, arguing that they should be > understood as the “Barr Doctrine.” According to the author, Barr’s opinions > justifying the removal of Noriega established a comprehensive, secret legal > framework asserting the President’s unfettered ability to conduct foreign > policy unilaterally, including through military force, covert action, and > in law enforcement operations. > > Other declassified highlights from today’s posting include: > > • A March 1988 CIA intelligence assessment warning that Noriega might > react to U.S. sanctions by providing “credible new evidence to the US media > or Special Prosecutor Walsh that would incriminate US government officials > in the Iran-Contra affair.” > > • The addenda to a still classified March 1989 policy paper on Panama that > proposed a “snatch” operation to get rid of Noriega and concluded that, > while it was certain to provoke criticism in Latin America and > internationally, that any outcry was “likely to abate quickly” if the > operation succeeded. > > • The minutes of a National Security Council meeting held six months prior > to the invasion, in which a frustrated President Bush approved escalatory > actions to bait Noriega: “The only option he [Bush] could see is more U.S. > actions and hope that there would be some other thing happening to get this > man out.” > > • A June OLC opinion in which Barr argued that the President has the > constitutional authority to “deploy the FBI to investigate and arrest > individuals for violating United States law, even if those actions > contravene customary international law” or the UN Charter. > > • A fully unredacted essay published in Studies in Intelligence by CIA > lawyer Jonathan Fredman that sheds light on a still classified 1989 OLC > opinion in which Barr argued that the ban on assassinations did not > preclude U.S. government personnel from supporting a coup against a > repressive foreign government even if the death of the head of state was > likely. > https://nsarchive.gwu.edu/briefing-book/2026-01-16/imperial-prerogative-how-panama-invasion-and-barr-doctrine-set-stage > > > -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Groups.io Links: You receive all messages sent to this group. View/Reply Online (#40209): https://groups.io/g/marxmail/message/40209 Mute This Topic: https://groups.io/mt/117300168/21656 -=-=- POSTING RULES & NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly & permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. #4 Do not exceed five posts a day. -=-=- Group Owner: [email protected] Unsubscribe: https://groups.io/g/marxmail/leave/13617172/21656/1316126222/xyzzy [[email protected]] -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
