Trump Revised Obama-Era Rules, But Exactly How Is Unclear
The ACLU has filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit on Thursday, naming the Defense, Justice, and State Departments, seeking to compel the release of the new rules governing drone strikes and overseas assassinations by the Trump Administration.
President Obama’s Presidential Policy Guidance was ultimately forced to be made public after a similar lawsuit, but his rules were subsequently revised by President Trump. Exactly how they were revised, and what they say now, has remained a total secret, however.
It is generally assumed that the restrictions were greatly eased, given President Trump’s own comments about killing “the enemy” in general, and had sought to largely eliminate pre-kill screenings to get to the assassination faster.
The ACLU said they were particularly concerned about reports that the “continuing and imminent threat” requirement from the Obama document had been eliminated, as part of an effort to make killing a looser system in general.