Isabella Carter
The impeachment process is a fundamental component of the system of checks and balances in the US Constitution. Impeachment, which originated in England and was later used by many American colonial and state governments, allows Congress to charge and try federal officials for treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors. The Framers of the Constitution included impeachment in Article I of the Constitution to prevent the abuse of executive power, even addressing the venue and process for impeachment trials, what actions warranted impeachment, and the likelihood of conviction. The House of Representatives has the sole power to impeach, while the Senate has the sole power to try impeachments, with the Chief Justice presiding in the case of presidential impeachment trials.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Why was impeachment included in the Constitution? | To address the potential for abuse of executive power |
| Who has the power to impeach? | The House of Representatives |
| Who has the power to try impeachments? | The Senate |
| Who presides over impeachment trials? | The Chief Justice of the United States |
| What is required to convict? | A two-thirds vote of the Senate |
| What are the sanctions for an impeached and convicted individual? | Removal from office and potentially a bar from holding future office |
| What types of officials can be impeached? | The President, Vice President, and all civil officers of the United States |
| What are the grounds for impeachment? | Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors |
| What is the process for impeachment? | A member of the House of Representatives presents a list of charges or requests a referral to a committee. The House debates the resolution and votes on articles of impeachment. If the House votes to impeach, managers are selected to present the case to the Senate. The Senate then holds an impeachment trial. |
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What You'll Learn
The power of impeachment was given to the House of Representatives
The House of Representatives can impeach a party with a simple majority of the House members present or such other criteria as the House adopts in accordance with Article One, Section 2, Clause 5 of the United States Constitution. This triggers a federal impeachment trial in the United States Senate, which can vote by a two-thirds majority to convict an official, removing them from office. The House of Representatives charges an official of the federal government by approving, by simple majority vote, articles of impeachment. The articles of impeachment are then sent to the Senate, which sits as a High Court of Impeachment to consider evidence, hear witnesses, and vote to acquit or convict the impeached official.
The impeachment process may be requested by members and non-members of the House of Representatives. For example, when the Judicial Conference of the United States suggests a federal judge be impeached, a charge of actions constituting grounds for impeachment may come from a special prosecutor, the president, or state or territorial legislature, grand jury, or by petition. An impeachment proceeding formally begins with a resolution adopted by the full House of Representatives. A resolution impeaching a particular individual is typically referred to as the House Committee on the Judiciary. The House debates the resolution and may, at the conclusion, consider the resolution as a whole or vote on each article of impeachment individually.
The Framers of the Constitution addressed many aspects of impeachment, including the venue and process for impeachment trials, what actions warranted impeachment, and the likelihood of conviction. The power of impeachment was considered so important that it was included in the Constitution even before the contours of the presidency were defined.
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The Senate has the power to try impeachments
The inclusion of impeachment in the US Constitution was influenced by its history in Revolutionary-era America, where individual states provided for impeachment in cases of "maladministration" or "corruption". The Founders feared the potential for abuse of executive power and considered impeachment a crucial check on the presidency, including it in Article I of the Constitution.
Article I, Section 3, Clause 6 of the US Constitution assigns the Senate sole responsibility to try impeachments. The House of Representatives brings articles (charges) of impeachment against an official, which must be approved by a simple majority vote. After this, the Senate sits as a High Court of Impeachment to consider evidence, hear witnesses, and vote to acquit or convict the impeached official. A two-thirds majority is required for conviction, and the penalty for an impeached official upon conviction is removal from office. The Senate may also disqualify convicted officials from holding public office in the future.
The Senate has tried several impeachment cases, including that of President Johnson, which established that the President may remove appointees even if they required Senate confirmation to hold office. The Senate has also tried judges who took the bench while drunk or profited from their position. Notably, the Senate did not convict William Blount, the first Senator to be impeached, who was accused of instigating an insurrection of American Indians to further British interests in Florida. However, the Senate did expel him from office.
The impeachment process in the Senate is a political one, largely unchecked by the judiciary. It is a tool for Congress to hold federal officials accountable for misconduct or "high crimes and misdemeanors". The process is remedial rather than punitive, and a party may still be subject to criminal or civil trial, prosecution, and conviction under the law after removal from office.
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Impeachment is a check on executive power
The impeachment process was included in the Constitution to address the potential for abuse of executive power. The Framers of the Constitution considered it so important that they included it in Article I even before they defined the presidency in Article II. The impeachment process allows Congress to charge and try an official of the federal government for "Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors".
The House of Representatives brings articles of impeachment against an official, and if approved by a simple majority vote, the official has been impeached. The Senate then holds an impeachment trial, and if found guilty, the official is removed from office and may be barred from holding elected office again. The Chief Justice of the United States presides over the trial in the case of presidential impeachment.
Impeachment is a political process, and the nature and scope of impeachment power have been shaped by shifting institutional relationships between the three branches of the government, evolving balances of power between political parties, and the scope of accountability exercised by the people over the Executive Branch. The impeachment process is remedial rather than punitive in nature, and because it is not punitive, a party may also be subject to criminal or civil trial, prosecution, and conviction under the law after removal from office.
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Impeachment proceedings are remedial, not punitive
The impeachment process is an important check on the Executive and Judicial Branches, recognised by the Framers as a crucial tool for holding government officers accountable for violations of the law and abuses of power. The Founders feared the potential for abuse of executive power and considered impeachment so important that they included it in Article I of the Constitution, even before they defined the presidency in Article II.
The impeachment process may be requested by members and non-members of the House of Representatives. Non-members include the Judicial Conference of the United States, the president, a grand jury, or by petition. A member of the House of Representatives may request impeachment proceedings by presenting a list of charges under oath or by asking for a referral to the appropriate committee. The impeachment process formally begins with a resolution adopted by the full House of Representatives, which may first pass through a House committee before the full House votes on it.
The House of Representatives charges an official of the federal government by approving, by a simple majority vote, articles of impeachment. After the House sends its articles of impeachment to the Senate, the Senate sits as a High Court of Impeachment to consider evidence, hear witnesses, and vote to acquit or convict the impeached official. A committee of representatives, called "managers", act as prosecutors before the Senate. The Senate requires a two-thirds majority to convict and remove an official from office, and a simple majority to bar an individual from holding future federal office.
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Impeachment can occur at the state level
Impeachment is the process of bringing charges against a government official for wrongdoing. The United States Constitution gives Congress the power to impeach federal officials. An official can be impeached for treason, bribery, and other high crimes and misdemeanors.
Impeachment can also occur at the state level. Most state legislatures can impeach state officials, including the governor, in accordance with their respective state constitutions. A state legislature can impeach its governor and other state officials. For example, at least eleven US state governors have faced an impeachment trial. The most recent impeachment of a state governor occurred on January 14, 2009, when the Illinois House of Representatives voted 117-1 to impeach Rod Blagojevich on corruption charges.
In addition to state-level impeachment, impeachment may also occur with tribal governments and at the local level of government. The Iroquois (Haudenosaunee) Confederacy's Great Law of Peace, which predates the US Constitution, includes what amounts to an impeachment process through which clan mothers can remove and replace a sachem for misdeeds.
The impeachment process typically begins with a resolution adopted by the full House of Representatives. The House of Representatives has the sole power of impeachment and can impeach an official with a simple majority vote. After the House of Representatives approves the articles of impeachment, it sends them to the Senate, which holds the sole power to try impeachments. The Senate sits as a High Court of Impeachment to consider evidence, hear witnesses, and vote to acquit or convict the impeached official. A two-thirds majority is required to convict an official, and the penalty for an impeached official upon conviction is removal from office.
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Frequently asked questions
The Founders feared the potential for abuse of executive power and considered impeachment important for maintaining a system of checks and balances.
The president, vice president, and all civil officers of the United States are subject to impeachment.
Treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors.
The House of Representatives brings articles of impeachment, and if approved by a simple majority vote, the official has been impeached. The Senate then holds an impeachment trial, and if found guilty, the official is removed from office and may be barred from holding elected office again.
