How it Really Works: Impeachment (pt.1)

There seems to be a lot of confusion concerning the “successful impeachment” of President Donald J. Trump.

What is actually going on?

This post will focus on outlining the impeachment process itself, the steps that need to be taken, and what a successful impeachment would entail. A part 2 will later be released to discuss the specific case of the current impeachment inquiry with the president, Donald J. Trump.

Essentially, the impeachment process happens in two broad stages:

1. Impeachment charges must be brought to and voted on in the House of Representatives.

2. A trial is held in the Senate.

To start off: the impeachment charges. The House of Representatives can impeach a president, (or any civil officer, for that matter), if they show signs of:

“Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanours.” United States Senate Manual

This becomes an issue, because what can be considered “Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanours” is not outlined, and is therefore left up to interpretation. Thus commences various investigations into any and all wrong-doings regarding the president.

At this point, investigation findings are rounded up through various forms, such as public hearings and releasing of evidence, and article(s) of impeachment are created based on said findings. These article(s) of impeachment are then presented to the House of Representatives, and the House votes on the article(s) of impeachment. If the majority (being at least 51%) of the House votes “no”, the impeachment process would end here. If the House votes “yes” on at least one of the articles, the President is officially impeached.

Victory! Or is it?

Unfortunately, this already long and elaborate process does not end here. In fact, it only becomes longer and more complicated at the following stages.

The next step is to take the “yes”-voted article(s) of impeachment to the Senate. Then begins a trial, in which the Senate acts as the jury. Skipping through a few other processes such as the trial preparation and and the long and arduous process of the trial itself, the final result rests on a vote by the senate in which 2/3 of the Senate must vote yes in order to convict the President. If so, the Vice President suddenly has a shorter title. However, if the 2/3 threshold is not met, the process ends.

But wait, there’s more! Even if the 2/3 process is not met, there is a possibility of a subsequent vote to prevent the President from holding office in the future, in which only a majority vote of the Senate would be necessary.

Stay tuned for my next post outlining the specific intricacies of President Trump’s impeachment!