The Duck of Minerva

Charlie Martel

Charlie Martel (@charliemartelwl) was professor of practice at the Washington & Lee University School of Law in 2013-15 and taught a course on national security legislation. He served in lead roles in Senate investigations as counsel to the Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee. He was part of the Committee investigation team on the 2009 Ft. Hood shootings and led a subcommittee investigation of the response to Hurricane Katrina. After his Senate service, he participated in planning a non-profit inquiry on national security detainee policy. Charlie has represented refugees seeking asylum in the U.S. and Greece. Charlie has a masters’ degree in international human rights law from the London School of Economics.

Recent Posts

We Shall Overcome

by | 16 January, 2017 |

Happy Birthday to Dr. Martin Luther King! In his honor here is his favorite singer, the majestic Mahalia Jackson, singing the theme song for the civil rights movement--"We Shall Overcome." After that I've posted Dr. King's soul shaking spoken word reflection on that song. All together they're five minutes long and well worth a listen. Mahalia: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vTyKJjj2oC0 Martin: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=130J-FdZDtY

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Twenty-Five (or so) Questions for Senate Hearings on Trump National Security Appointees

by | 8 January, 2017 |

I used to be a Senate staffer, and one of the most interesting parts of my job was helping Senators prepare for hearings.  If I were a Senate staffer now, here’s hearing questions I’d recommend for President-Elect Trump’s national security nominees, Rex Tillerson (Secretary of State), General James Mattis (Secretary of Defense), and General John Kelly (Secretary of Homeland Security). These questions would serve as starting points for dialogue during the hearings and I’m sure would lead to other questions. On Whether War Works: Over the past 15 years, we have used military force (or, as we...

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A Plea for Cease Fire in the New American Civil War, Part II—The Case for Civility and a Changed Tone of Debate

by | 2 January, 2017 |

Consider these two presidential statements: “Happy New Year to all, including to my many enemies and those who have fought me and lost so badly they just don’t know what to do. Love!”—President-Elect Donald Trump’s New Year’s Twitter greeting “We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of our affection.”—President Abraham Lincoln, from his first inaugural address Both Lincoln and Trump wrote their words after heated and divisive elections. Both won their elections though they lost the popular vote.  Lincoln spoke to...

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When Hell Freezes Over—Will Generals (and Admirals) Stop Global Warming and Bring Peace and Human Rights to the Trump White House?

by | 12 December, 2016 |

It now looks like the candidate who boasted that he knew more than the generals will be a President who appoints them and asks their advice. There has been considerable criticism of this from those concerned about a concentration of civilian power in the hands of former military brass. This is well-reasoned, because a pipeline from the Pentagon to the White House potentially gives too much civilian authority to the military and narrows the lens through which policy is made. We ought to look critically at the institutional consequences of appointing flag officers to cabinet office or key...

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