Senior Lecturer Allen Weiner, an expert in international and national security, moderated the Commonwealth Club's presentation by UC Berkeley law professor John Yoo, titled "Crisis and Command: Presidential Power in the 21st Century":

John Yoo, Law Professor, UC Berkeley; Author, Crisis and Command

Allen Weiner, Co-director, International Law Program, Stanford Law School - Moderator

At the Department of Justice, Yoo played a large and controversial role in shaping the Bush administration’s policy in the war on terrorism, arguing that prisoner of war status under the Geneva Conventions does not apply to “enemy combatants.” He further asserted executive authority to undertake “enhanced interrogation techniques” regarded as torture by the current Justice Department.