What Does It Take to Impeach a Sitting President

Impeachment is a process in the House of Representatives that makes up the showtime major step required to remove a regime official from role. Impeachment has been used infrequently in the United States—at either the federal or state level—and even less and so in Britain, where the legal concept was showtime created and used. Three sitting U.S. presidents, Andrew Johnson, Bill Clinton and Donald Trump have been impeached past the House of Representatives; President Trump is the simply i to have been impeached twice.

Article 2 of the Constitution

Later much contend at the 1787 Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, the attendees—amidst them George Washington, Alexander Hamilton and Benjamin Franklin—approved the concept behind the impeachment of government officials.

Adapted from British law, the impeachment process was included in Article 2, Section 4 of the U.S. Constitution, the document that serves every bit the foundation of the American organisation of regime.

Some framers of the Constitution were opposed to the impeachment clause, because having the legislative branch sit in sentence over the executive might compromise the separation of powers they sought to establish between the three branches of regime: executive, legislative and judicial.

All the same, Elbridge Gerry of Massachusetts, who would subsequently serve in the House of Representatives and as vice president nether James Madison, noted, "A expert magistrate volition not fright [impeachments]. A bad one ought to be kept in fear of them."

What Crimes Are Impeachable?

Article 2, Section 4 states that the "President, Vice President and all civil Officers of the U.s.a., shall be removed from Role on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors." This describes an abuse of ability past a high-level public official.

How the Impeachment Process Works

Generally, the showtime step in the impeachment process in the House of Representatives is to concord a formal inquiry into whether or not there are grounds for impeachment. This can exist carried out by a House committee or an independent counsel. The Business firm of Representatives can as well just hold a floor vote on articles of impeachment without whatsoever committee or console vetting them.

Impeachment does non refer to the removal of an elected official from office, but rather information technology represents the first of a ii-footstep process in potentially removing that official.

Based on the findings of a Business firm committee or independent console, the House Judiciary Committee can then draft and approve articles of impeachment. These articles may and so go to the Business firm floor for a vote. If the articles are passed by a simple majority, the matter moves to the Senate.

Senate Trial Follows Firm Impeachment Vote

The Senate then acts as courtroom, jury and judge, except in presidential impeachment trials, during which the chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Courtroom acts as approximate.

A 2-thirds majority of the Senate is required to captive. If a president is acquitted by the Senate, the impeachment trial is over. But if he or she is establish guilty, the Senate trial moves to the sentencing or "punishment" phase.

Penalty If Convicted: Removal and Possible Ban From Government Service

The Constitution allows for 2 types of punishments for a president found guilty of an impeachable criminal offense: "Judgment in Cases of Impeachment shall non extend further than to removal from Part, and disqualification to hold and enjoy any Office of award, Trust or Profit nether the United States."

The kickoff punishment, removal from role, is automatically enforced following a two-thirds guilty vote. But the second punishment, disqualification from holding any time to come regime position, requires a separate Senate vote. In this case, only a simple bulk is required to ban the impeached president from any hereafter authorities part for life. That 2nd vote has never been held since no president has been found guilty in the Senate trial.

Impeachment is considered a ability to be used only in extreme cases, and as such, information technology has been used relatively infrequently. Although Congress has impeached and removed eight federal officials—all federal judges—and then far no sitting president has e'er been found guilty during a Senate impeachment trial.

READ More: What Happens After Impeachment?

Who Becomes President If the President Is Impeached?

If the U.S. president is impeached, the first in line to succeed him or her is the vice president, followed by the speaker of the House of Representatives, the president of the Senate, and then the secretarial assistant of country.

One time the vice president becomes president, the 25 Subpoena to the Constitution permits the vice president to name their own successor: "Whenever at that place is a vacancy in the office of the Vice President, the President shall nominate a Vice President who shall take office upon confirmation past a majority vote of both Houses of Congress."

The electric current line of succession after President Donald Trump is Vice President Mike Pence, followed past Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi, President Pro Tempore of the Senate Charles Grassley and and so Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

Presidents Who Faced Impeachment

John Tyler Impeachment — President John Tyler.

VCG Wilson/Corbis/Getty Images

3 U.Due south. presidents have been impeached by the House of Representatives while others take faced formal impeachment inquiries. Each example saw different results.

John Tyler was was the start president to face impeachment charges. Nicknamed "His Accidency" for assuming the presidency subsequently William Henry Harrison died afterward just xxx days in office, Tyler was wildly unpopular with his ain Whig party. On January 10, 1843, Representative John M. Botts of Virginia proposed a resolution that would telephone call for the formation of a committee to investigate charges of misconduct against Tyler for the purposes of possible impeachment.

Botts took outcome with Tyler's handling of the U.S. Treasury and what he described as the president's "arbitrary, despotic, and corrupt abuse of veto power." Later on a short debate, however, the House of Representatives voted downwardly Botts' resolution.

Andrew Johnson Impeachment

Andrew Johnson wasn't so lucky. Johnson, who rose from vice president to president post-obit the bump-off of Abraham Lincoln, was impeached in March, 1868, over his decision to dismiss Secretary of War Edwin Grand. Stanton.

Congress argued that Stanton'south termination was an impeachable offense that violated the Tenure of Office Deed, which had been voted into law the year before and prohibited the president from removing officials confirmed by the Senate without the legislative body'southward blessing.

On May 26, 1868, the impeachment trial in the Senate ended with Johnson's opponents failing to get sufficient votes to remove him from office, and he finished the residue of his term.

Curlicue to Keep

READ More: President Johnson Was Impeached Over Firing a Cabinet Member

Richard Nixon Resignation

After Johnson, several U.S. presidents faced threats of impeachment, including Grover Cleveland, Herbert Hoover, Harry Truman, Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush.

All of these sometime commanders-in-chief had articles of impeachment filed against them in the House of Representatives. None of them were actually impeached, meaning those manufactures of impeachment failed to garner the necessary votes to move them to the Senate for a hearing.

President Richard 1000. Nixon faced impeachment over his involvement in the Watergate scandal and its fallout. In fact, the House of Representatives approved three articles of impeachment against Nixon, making him the second U.Due south. president (afterward Johnson) to face a potential hearing before the Senate.

Still, Nixon resigned in 1974 earlier Congress could brainstorm the proceedings.

READ MORE: Watergate Scandal: Timeline, Summary & Deep Throat

Bill Clinton Impeachment

President Bill Clinton was impeached in 1998 over allegations of perjury and obstruction of justice stemming from a lawsuit filed against him relating to the Monica Lewinsky scandal.

Although the Firm of Representatives overwhelmingly approved two manufactures of impeachment against President Clinton, he was ultimately acquitted by the Senate the side by side twelvemonth and finished his second 4-year term in role in 2000.

READ More than: Why Clinton Survived Impeachment While Nixon Resigned Afterwards Watergate

Donald Trump 2019 Impeachment

On September 24, 2019, Firm Speaker Nancy Pelosi appear a formal impeachment inquiry into President Trump regarding his alleged efforts to pressure the president of Ukraine to investigate possible wrongdoings past Trump'southward political rival, quondam Vice President Joe Biden.

The decision to qualify the impeachment research came after a whistleblower complaint detailed a July phone chat between Trump and President Volodymyr Zelensky in which Trump allegedly tied Ukrainian military machine help to personal political favors. The White House later released a reconstructed transcript of the phone call, which many Democrats argued demonstrated that Trump had violated the Constitution.

On December eighteen, 2019, Trump became the 3rd U.S. president in history to be impeached every bit the Business firm of Representatives voted nearly along political party lines to impeach him over abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. Only two Democrats opposed the article on abuse of power and a third Democrat opposed the 2nd article on obstruction of justice. No Republican voted in favor of either article of impeachment. On February 5, 2020, the Senate voted largely along party lines to bear Trump on both charges.

Donald Trump 2021 Impeachment

On January 11, 2021, House Democrats introduced another article of impeachment against President Trump for high crimes and misdemeanors, citing telephone calls, speeches and tweets that allegedly helped incite a trigger-happy crowd that attacked the U.Due south. Capitol on January 6, 2021.

On January xiii, 2021, the Firm of Representatives voted to impeach President Trump, making him the only president in history to be impeached twice. Different Trump's first impeachment, 10 House Republicans joined Democrats in voting for impeachment. One hundred and ninety-vii Republicans voted confronting the second impeachment. On February 13, 2021, the Senate acquitted so-former President Trump in his 2nd impeachment trial. 7 Republicans joined fifty Democrats in voting to convict Trump, falling curt of the 67 guilty votes needed for conviction.

READ More: How Many U.South. Presidents Have Faced Impeachment?

Impeachment at the State Level

In improver to federal impeachment, land legislatures are too granted the power to impeach elected officials in 49 of the 50 states, with Oregon being the solitary exception.

At the state level, the procedure of impeachment is essentially the same every bit at the national level: typically, the lower state legislative chamber (the land assembly) is charged with levying and investigating formal accusations earlier ultimately voting on articles of impeachment should at that place be show of possible misconduct.

If the lower trunk approves any article(s) of impeachment, the upper chamber (the country senate) conducts a hearing or trial on the charges, during which both the legislators and the accused may call witnesses and nowadays evidence.

Once the evidence and testimony has been presented, the upper chamber of the land legislature—much like the U.South. Senate at the federal level—must vote on whether the charged official is guilty or innocent.

Usually, a supermajority (two-thirds majority or greater) is required for conviction and removal from part.

And just similar at the federal level, impeachment at the state level is extremely rare. For example, the land of Illinois has impeached just two officials in its entire history—a gauge in 1832-33 and a governor (Rod Blagojevich) in 2008-09.

Impeachment in U.k.

Ironically, given its origins in British law, the process of impeachment has been used even less frequently in the Britain.

Originally, impeachment was developed as a means past which the British Parliament could prosecute and try holders of public office for high treason or other crimes. Even so, it was created prior to the evolution of political parties in Britain and the institution of collective and individual ministerial responsibility within the government.

When the process was used in Britain, primarily in the 16th and 17th centuries, Parliament and the courts had very limited oversight of government power. Although efforts to remove the ability to impeach from Parliament via legislation take failed to pass, the process is considered obsolete in the U.Yard. and hasn't been used since 1806.

Sources

Impeachment. U.S. Business firm of Representatives.
Impeachment. U.Due south. Senate.
The Senate Acquits President Clinton. Washington Mail.
Separation of Powers—Impeachment. National Conference of Country Legislatures.
Impeached Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich has been removed from part. Chicago Tribune.
Impeachment. Parliament (U.K.).

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Source: https://www.history.com/topics/us-government/impeachment-in-us-history