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Constitution Project

Washington, D.C., USA

Jun 5, 2024

Overview

The Constitution Project is a nonpartisan legal and constitutional research program, originally founded as an independent think tank, whose stated goal is to build bipartisan consensus on significant constitutional and legal questions. Founded in 1997, it has since become a program operating within the Project On Government Oversight (POGO), a Washington, D.C.-based watchdog organization, where it is known as the Constitution Project at POGO.

Key functions and role

The Constitution Project convenes bipartisan committees and task forces of legal scholars, former officials and practitioners to examine specific constitutional issues, including separation of powers, congressional oversight authority, presidential emergency powers, government surveillance and detainee treatment. It produces reports and policy statements, files amicus briefs in federal courts, and testifies before Congress. Its most prominent product is a 2013 report by its Task Force on Detainee Treatment, examining the U.S. government's treatment of terrorism suspects across the Clinton, Bush and Obama administrations.

History

Virginia Sloan founded the Constitution Project in 1997 as an independent nonprofit think tank, organizing its work initially around a Rule of Law Program and a Criminal Justice Program. In 2017, the organization joined the Project On Government Oversight, becoming one of POGO's constituent programs rather than a freestanding nonprofit. Sloan continues to serve on POGO's board of directors.

Political positions

The Constitution Project has organized its work around bipartisan committees, historically co-chaired by figures from across the political spectrum, such as a Georgetown law professor and a former chairman of the American Conservative Union. Its parent organization, POGO, describes itself as a nonpartisan watchdog, though some conservative-leaning commentators have characterized POGO's broader positions as left-of-center.

Leadership

David Janovsky leads the Constitution Project at POGO, focusing on separation-of-powers issues, congressional oversight authority and Justice Department accountability. As a program of POGO, the Constitution Project falls under the leadership of POGO's executive director and president, Danielle Brian, and POGO's board of directors.