Civics 201: How the Impeachment Process works

The country of the United States of America has been rocked this month in similar ways that the UK has been rocked by the Brexit debate. In 2016 people suspected foreign interference, and relationships between the then GOP Presidential Candidate. For the older generations who grew up during the Cold War, it likely reflected their deepest seeded fears written about in "The Manchurian Candidate" that at some point in the country's history, a leader would take power with the interests of one of the country's biggest rivals in modern history as a higher priority than its own interests.

The way the events have unfolded in the political realm with the coverage of Barr, attempts to prevent Congress from gaining access to the full report of the investigation to understand exactly how much of their fears were substaniated have other contextual backdrop surrounding party rivalries in past decades, and the use of the impeachment process for purely political grounds in the 1990s. Both parties, and media coverage of politics, have a way of assigning value judgements of some hidden political agenda to everything either party does. The charges facing William Clinton were of much less severity with the suggested charges facing this administration, but already a headline has appeared in my newsfeed that during that impeachment process, members of Congress cared about getting to the truth behind the allegations. Recent behavior by the GOP controlled Senate has been unwilling to do anything to check, criticize or hold this administration accountable. One of the most recent embarassing moments involved the SCOTUS hearing of Brett Kavanaugh during which 90% of the country wanted him rejected, except for the GOP Senators on the Judicial Committee being the only people in the country to think otherwise and acting accordingly.

There have been new members of this Congress, as well as elder members of the Senate, who have immitated the President's behavior of attacking him (their political opponents) in loud public rants. Calling to "Impeach the M@#$F@#^%" like people make threats "I'm going to sue your a@#." If you look at what passes for entertainment in many reality TV shows, it seems in keeping that the society is captivated by this kind of drama. However, the problem is exacerbated that both groups reflect very little understanding of how the impeachment process works, and that is dangerous. If the allegations prove true, these crimes against the country would be perhaps the most severe in the country's history. Some people have referred to having such a dangerous disease in government akin to having cancer. Cancer is treated with great severity and sobriety. Its treatment discussed by experts in oncology, and carried out with surgical precision. Ever popular TV dramas surrounding the lives of surgeons in and out of the operating room enjoy crafting plot lines around this process. However, in recent days I have not seen any treatment by members of the government, members of the media, or voters themselves, with the same care.

Recently, among the many posts of news articles about impeachment on my newsfeed, I quoted Senator Amy Klobuchar who was doing her part to explain her role in the process as a juror who could not reach a verdict without the full details in front of her. The poster said "I do not even know how impeachment works, but the House does it, not the Senate right?" This poster is a contemporary alumni of mine from Yale University.

For the benefit of the nation, and all of those watching with baited breath, here is a description of what Impeachment means. It is not in itself a punishment for a crime. It is only the ability of firing a government official who has severely gone outside their role in their elected job. Punishment for a crime would involve a separate trial.

"Impeachment in the United States is the process by which the lower house of a legislature brings charges against a civil officer of government for crimes alleged to have been committed, analogous to the bringing of an indictment by a grand jury. At the federal level, this is at the discretion of the House of Representatives. Most impeachments have concerned alleged crimes committed while in office, though there have been a few cases in which officials have been impeached and subsequently convicted for crimes committed prior to taking office.[1] The impeached official remains in office until a trial is held. That trial, and their removal from office if convicted, is separate from the act of impeachment itself. Analogous to a trial before a judge and jury, these proceedings are (where the legislature is bicameral) conducted by upper house of the legislature, which at the federal level is the Senate.

At the federal level, Article I, Section 2, Clause 5 of the Constitution grants to the House of Representatives "the sole power of impeachment", and Article I, Section 3, Clause 6 grants to the Senate "the sole Power to try all Impeachments". In considering articles of impeachment, the House is obligated to base any charges on the constitutional standards specified in Article II, Section 4: "The President, Vice President, and all civil Officers of the United States shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other High Crimes and Misdemeanors"

The full text of the Constitution of the United States of America can be found here:

It is my sincere hope that the leaders of the country will begin to do a better job behaving with the sobriety such a situation deserves, that the media begin to treat the topic as more than political ploys to win elections, and the voters begin to educate themselves further.