All's Fair In Love and Law: Prof Finds A Strategic Source For Funding Ukraine

Bring war material with you from home, but forage on the enemy. Thus the army will have food enough for its needs.

Unity March Held In Kyiv As Russian Military Invasion Seems Imminent

(Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)

Ever wonder what Trump’s “Make Mexico built the wall” would have looked like if it actually had any teeth? If so, you might want to pay attention to Professor Laurence Tribe’s argument about what the US could do with Russian reserves held in the States. Who knew those negotiation classes about playing hardball would actually come in handy?

Tribe argues that by using the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977, the Russian assets that have been frozen could be controlled, directed, and compelled toward any use. You could buy a lot of nested dolls with that type of coin! Or it could secure Ukraine some much needed tanks, medicine, and food. This is, of course, the stuff Robert Greene fanboys dream of — to see all the pieces come together and plan out how to make the most strategic use of one’s advantage. It is nice to read that a barrel of your opponent’s provisions is worth twenty of yours in some Art of War hornbook and pass it over as an old timey story, but to see it unfold in a real time conflict is wild to see. And just to be clear, the 20x multiplier here kicks in because not only are you getting access to resources you otherwise wouldn’t have had, you also deprive your opposition of their opportunities to make power moves in the same swoop.

Biden Can Seize Russian Cash In U.S., Harvard Law Professor Says [MSNBC]


Chris Williams became a social media manager and assistant editor for Above the Law in June 2021. Prior to joining the staff, he moonlighted as a minor Memelord™ in the Facebook group Law School Memes for Edgy T14s.  He endured Missouri long enough to graduate from Washington University in St. Louis School of Law. He is a former boatbuilder who cannot swim, a published author on critical race theory, philosophy, and humor, and has a love for cycling that occasionally annoys his peers. You can reach him by email at cwilliams@abovethelaw.com and by tweet at @WritesForRent.

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