Impeachment: Lawbreaking Presidents And The Rules Of Removal

The impeachment of a president is a complex and contentious issue. In the United States, impeachment is the process of bringing charges against a government official for alleged misconduct, with the potential outcome of removal from office. While the Constitution grants Congress the authority to impeach and remove the President for treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors, the exact scope of what constitutes impeachable offences is not always clear. The Supreme Court's decision in Trump v. United States, granting immunity to former President Donald Trump for a range of criminal conduct committed while in office, has further complicated the matter. This decision has set a precedent that suggests presidents may be above the law and not subject to the same criminal liability as other citizens. However, it's important to note that impeachment is a political process and does not preclude criminal liability, meaning that a president can still face criminal prosecution after leaving office.

The House of Representatives has the sole power of impeachment

The impeachment process begins with the House of Representatives, which brings forth articles of impeachment, or charges, against an official. These articles must be approved by a simple majority vote in the House for the official to be impeached. The House has the discretion to determine when impeachment proceedings are appropriate and what rules to follow during the process.

Once the House has impeached an official, the process moves to the Senate, which is responsible for trying impeachments. The Senate holds an impeachment trial, with the Chief Justice of the United States presiding in the case of a presidential impeachment. The Senate considers the evidence, hears witnesses, and votes to acquit or convict the impeached official. A two-thirds majority vote is required to convict, and the penalty for conviction is removal from office, and possibly a bar from holding future office.

The House of Representatives has initiated impeachment proceedings more than 60 times, but there have been only 21 impeachments, including three presidents. The impeachment process is a crucial tool for holding government officials accountable for any wrongdoing, ensuring that they are subject to the rule of law, just like any other citizen.

The Senate has the sole power to try impeachments

The United States Constitution grants the House of Representatives the "sole Power of Impeachment" and the Senate the "sole Power to try all Impeachments". This means that the House of Representatives has the authority to bring charges against an official of the federal government, while the Senate acts as a High Court of Impeachment, considering evidence, hearing witnesses, and voting to acquit or convict the accused.

The impeachment process begins with the House of Representatives, which charges an official of the federal government by approving, by a simple majority vote, articles of impeachment. These articles of impeachment are then sent to the Senate, which conducts a trial. In the case of a presidential impeachment trial, the Chief Justice of the United States presides. The Senate trial takes the form of a standard trial, with the Senate having the right to call witnesses and each side having the right to cross-examine witnesses. The House members, collectively referred to as "managers" during the trial, act as the prosecution, while the impeached official has the right to mount a defence with their own attorneys.

For the Senate to convict an accused official, a two-thirds supermajority of those present is required. If such a supermajority is achieved, the official is automatically removed from office and may be barred from holding future office by a separate majority vote. If the supermajority is not achieved, the defendant is acquitted and no punishment is imposed.

The Senate has used its impeachment power sparingly, with only about half of Senate impeachment trials resulting in conviction and removal from office since 1789.

The definition of high crimes and misdemeanors is debated

The definition of "high crimes and misdemeanors" has been debated since the drafting of the US Constitution. The phrase is not defined in the Constitution, and considerable debate occupied the Framers of the Constitution over the issue of impeachment. The Framers intended for removal from office to be the final step in a two-part process that began in the House of Representatives and ended in a trial-like hearing before the US Senate.

Generally, the debate over the phrase has split into two camps. The minority view is held by critics who undertake a literal reading of the Constitution. They maintain that "high crimes" means criminal activity, and argue that the Framers wanted only criminal activities to be the basis for impeachment.

The generally accepted viewpoint is much broader, defining "high crimes and misdemeanors" as any serious abuse of power, including both legal and illegal activities. Supporters of this reading believe that because impeachment is a public inquiry, it is appropriate to read the phrase broadly to provide the most thorough inquiry possible. Thus, a civil officer may face impeachment for misconduct, violations of the oath of office, serious incompetence, or, in the case of judges, activities that undermine public confidence or damage the integrity of the judiciary.

The vagueness of the standard has left much interpretive power to Congress. Ultimately, the determination of whether an offense constitutes a ground for impeachment rests with Congress.

Impeachment is a check on the executive and judicial branches

The US Constitution divides the government into three branches: the legislative, executive, and judicial. Each branch has specific powers and is subject to checks and balances to ensure that no one branch accumulates too much power.

The legislative branch makes laws, but the executive branch, through the President, can veto these laws. The legislative branch can override this veto with enough votes. The judicial branch interprets laws, but the President nominates Supreme Court justices, court of appeals judges, and district court judges who make the evaluations.

The House of Representatives brings articles of impeachment (charges) against an official. If the House adopts the articles by a simple majority vote, the official has been impeached. The Senate then holds an impeachment trial. If found guilty, the official is removed from office and may be barred from holding elected office again.

Impeachment proceedings are remedial rather than punitive in nature, and the remedy is limited to removal from office. Because the process is not punitive, a party may also be subject to criminal or civil trial, prosecution, and conviction under the law after removal from office.

Congress's power of impeachment is an important check on the executive and judicial branches, ensuring that government officials are held accountable for their actions.

Impeachment is a practice of tribal governments

In the United States, impeachment is the process by which a legislature may bring charges against an officeholder for misconduct, with a penalty of removal from office. Impeachment may occur at the federal level, the state level, and the local level.

Impeachment is also a practice of tribal governments. Tribal sovereignty in the United States refers to the concept of the inherent authority of Indigenous tribes to govern themselves within U.S. borders. The U.S. federal government initially recognized American Indian tribes as independent nations and entered into treaties with them. However, as the nation expanded westward, internal political pressure for "Indian removal" grew, and Congress prohibited any future treaties in the Indian Appropriations Act of 1871.

Today, the U.S. recognizes tribal nations as "domestic dependent nations," and there are 574 tribal nations recognized by the federal government, 229 of which are in Alaska. The powers of tribal courts vary depending on the state, and the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that tribes have no jurisdiction over non-Indians.

Many tribal governments have an impeachment process, and some notable examples include the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, Northern Cheyenne Indian Reservation, Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, and Oglala Sioux. The impeachment process in these tribal governments generally follows a similar bifurcated model to the federal government, with an impeachment vote followed by an impeachment trial.

A notable instance of Native tribal impeachment was the 1975 effort to impeach Dick Wilson as chairman of the Oglala of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. This incident immediately preceded the Wounded Knee Occupation.

• Locher Harjo, impeached and removed in 1876 as chief of the Lower Creeks Muscogee
• Cecilia Fire Thunder, impeached three times in 2005 and 2006 as president of the Oglala Sioux, and removed on the third impeachment
• John Red Eagle, impeached and removed in 2014 as chief of the Osage Nation
• Patrick Lambert, impeached and removed in 2017 as principal chief of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians
• Darla Black, impeached and removed in 2019 as vice chairwoman of the Oglala Sioux Tribe
• Donna Fisher, impeached and removed in 2022 as president of the Northern Cheyenne Tribal Council

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