Impeachment proceedings against President Andrew Johnson
Image credit: TheNation.com
The word “impeachment” is being bandied about everywhere,
both from the media and members of Congress screaming for President Trump’s head, and from
the House judiciary panel and conservatives preparing articles of impeachment
against Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein for “stonewalling
their requests for documents”. So here is a link to a web page that provides an
overview of the impeachment process, whether of the President or of a federal
official. This overview concludes:
Historically, Congress has issued
Articles of Impeachment for acts in three general categories:
·
Exceeding the constitutional bounds of the powers
of the office.
·
Behavior grossly incompatible with the proper
function and purpose of the office.
·
Employing the power of the office for an
improper purpose or for personal gain.
The impeachment process is
political, rather than criminal in nature. Congress has no power to impose
criminal penalties on impeached officials. But criminal courts may try and
punish officials if they have committed crimes.
The rest of the overview is here.
# # #
