Outcome Of Clinton

’s Impeachment Trial Essay, Research Paper

There has rarely been a time in American history when the very foundations of our governmental system have been tested. The impeachment trial against William Jefferson Clinton gave the American people a chance to examine the constitutional process that our government has been founded upon. We can examine how all branches of government (executive, legislative and judicial) came together and defined their boundaries respectively. The outcome of this trial is well known, but based on the facts there are two points to examine that define the charges that were made against this president. The articles of impeachment, charging the president with perjury and obstruction of justice, given to the Senate from the House of Representatives, could have only resulted in one of three outcomes: dismissal of charges, acquittal or conviction and removal from office. For this Congress however, it was not enough to simply rely on facts when there were other variables to take into account; there were biases that clearly clouded the judgments of many Congressmen; to understand these variables that existed helps in comprehending the final outcome of the impeachment trial. The founders of the Constitution of the United States of America laid the framework for individual liberties and freedoms as well as governmental duties and responsibilities that to this day are undergoing change and refinement in order to “form a more perfect Union.” The creation of this new Constitution was unlike anything that had been created or even thought of before, and therefore led to many criticisms of its capacity to work in the manner in which it was conceived. Understanding that there may come a time in the future when a president may not perform his duties with the country’s best interests at heart, the founding fathers made provisions for just such an event if it were to occur. In the Constitution there are specific entries devoted to the topic of impeachment; these entries state what “crimes” are to be committed in order for the Congress to remove a president deemed unfit for the office. Article II, Section 4 of the Constitution states that “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.” This language may seem very straight-forward at first glance, but during the course of this nation’s history there have been times when defining what the founders meant has been difficult. Once before in American history, during the turbulent era of Reconstruction that followed the Civil War, a president was impeached by the House of Representatives and tried before the Senate. This was Andrew Johnson, like Clinton a Southerner who had alienated a majority of Republicans in Congress. The roots of the impeachment of Andrew Johnson lay not only in the increasingly hostile relations between himself and Congress, but in a peculiar feature of Republican Reconstruction policy itself. For Congress had enjoined the army to carry out a policy its commander-in-chief resolutely opposed. Even before 1867, a number of Radicals had called for Johnson’s removal, fearing that Reconstruction could never be successful so long as he remained in office. Although some Republicans had long called for Johnson’s removal, it was not until February 1868 that the House voted to impeach him. The catalyst was Johnson’s disregard of the Tenure of Office Act, which forbade the dismissal of certain federal officials without the approval of the Senate. Claiming the law was unconstitutional, Johnson removed Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton, an action that became the basis of the Articles of Impeachment. Most consider Andrew Johnson’s impeachment to have been a mistake. In our political system, impeachment is an extraordinary remedy, a means of protecting the political system and the people themselves against serious abuses of power. It is a blunt instrument, designed to be used only in extreme cases, not a judicial procedure to deal with every possible breach of the law. As for Richard Nixon, he resigned before a trial could commence. Now, we arrive at the present with President Clinton; the problem with this case was that there was no true precedent set for the Senate to use as a guideline. One of the major questions that came up over the course of the trial was: What constituted “High Crimes and Misdemeanors” since this president was clearly not in violation of either treason or bribery. This was the question that the House dealt with in deciding what course of action they were going to take in this case. Each level of government had major roles to play as this trial defined its course. We know exactly how the House of Representatives dealt with its role in the impeachment process. The process was this; evidence was produced and given to the House Judiciary Committee. Once it was there, that committee examined and reviewed all of the evidence and submitted it to the House floor. In the House, the articles of impeachment were voted on by the representatives; two articles passed and two articles were defeated. After the voting was completed the articles that were agreed upon were sent to the Senate, where I think the most interesting part of this entire process began. The Constitution states in Article I, Section 6 that “The Senate shall have the sole Power to try all impeachmen