how impeachment works
article ii section 4 of the u s constitution says importantly impeachment is not the same as removal or conviction though many people think that is the case impeachment is a charging process similar to an indictment in a criminal proceeding impeachment at the federal level is rare removal even more so impeachment proceedings have been initiated by the house of representatives more than 60 times since the adoption of the u s constitution just 20 of those proceedings have actually ended with impeachment there have been just eight convictions by the senate all of them of federal judges 5only three u s presidents andrew johnson bill clinton and donald trump have been impeached by the u s house of representatives all three were acquitted by the senate 4officials subject to impeachmentthe constitution names the president and vice president as subject to impeachment the question of exactly who all civil officers of the united states are has been the subject of much discussion the federalist papers 85 essays by alexander hamilton john jay and james madison that comprise a foundational document of american history make clear that impeachment serves as a check on the executive and judicial branches of government the essays do not however specify who within those branches would be considered civil officers 67the term civil officers is broad enough to include any officer appointed by the federal government based on historic precedent federal judges including supreme court justices are subject to impeachment as are members of the president s cabinet military officers who face discipline under the military code are not subject to impeachment nor are members of congress a precedent established in 1799 8impeachable offensesthere was considerable debate at the 1787 constitutional convention in philadelphia over the definition of impeachable crimes initially the founders said the president and others could be removed by impeachment and conviction for corrupt conduct or malpractice or neglect of duty later the wording was changed to treason bribery or corruption then to just treason or bribery before finally settling on treason bribery or other high crimes and misdemeanors the debate did not stop there because the phrase high crimes and misdemeanors left the matter of impeachable offenses open to interpretation since the ratification of the constitution in 1789 the definition of high crimes and misdemeanors has plagued members of congress lawyers and legal scholars alike the framers borrowed the term high crimes and misdemeanors from british law wherein it referred to crimes by public officials against the government in practical terms as representative gerald ford said in 1970 an impeachable offense is whatever a majority of the house of representatives considers it to be at a given moment in history 9duties of the house and senatearticle i section 2 of the constitution states that the house of representatives has the sole power to impeach 10 the house however does not have the power to remove an impeached individual that duty goes to the senate which holds a trial and decides whether to convict and remove or acquit 11impeachment begins when the house adopts a resolution calling for an investigation by a house committee into charges against the official in question the committee may recommend impeachment or dismissal the house then votes by simple majority to approve or dismiss articles of impeachment following approval the house appoints managers to conduct the impeachment trial in the senate the house then passes a resolution informing the senate about the articles of impeachment and the names of the house managers who will bring the case before the senate 