How can you be impeached

An impeachment proceeding is the formal process by which a sitting president of the United States is accused of wrongdoing. It is a political process and not a criminal process. The articles of impeachment in this case there's just one are the list of charges drafted against the president. The vice president and all civil officers of the U. The process begins in the House of Representatives, where any member may make a suggestion to launch an impeachment proceeding.

It is really up to the speaker of the House in practice, to determine whether or not to proceed with an inquiry into the alleged wrongdoing, though any member can force a vote to impeach. Over House Democrats introduced the most recent article of impeachment on Jan.

The impeachment article, which seeks to bar Trump from holding office again, also cited Trump's controversial call with the Georgia Republican secretary of state where he urged him to "find" enough votes for Trump to win the state and his efforts to "subvert and obstruct" certification of the vote.

And it cited the Constitution's 14th Amendment , noting that it "prohibits any person who has 'engaged in insurrection or rebellion against' the United States" from holding office. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other Democrats accelerated the procedure -- not holding any hearings -- and voted just a week before the inauguration of President Biden. When it comes to impeachment, the Constitution lists "treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors," as justification for the proceedings, but the vagueness of the third option has caused problems in the past.

The Senate is tasked with handling the impeachment trial, which is presided over by the chief justice of the United States in the case of sitting presidents. However, in this unusual case, since Trump is not a sitting president, the largely ceremonial task has been left to the Senate pro tempore, Sen.

Patrick Leahy, D-Vt. It is an oath that I take extraordinarily seriously. To remove a president from office, two-thirds of the members must vote in favor — at present 67 if all senators are present and voting.

If the Senate fails to convict, a president is considered impeached but is not removed, as was the case with both Clinton in and Andrew Johnson in During the Federal Constitutional Convention, the framers addressed whether even to include impeachment trials in the Constitution, the venue and process for such trials, what crimes should warrant impeachment, and the likelihood of conviction.

Rufus King of Massachusetts argued that having the legislative branch pass judgment on the executive would undermine the separation of powers; better to let elections punish a President. A bad one ought to be kept in fear of them. Another issue arose regarding whether Congress might lack the resolve to try and convict a sitting President. Presidents, some delegates observed, controlled executive appointments which ambitious Members of Congress might find desirable. Delegates to the Convention also remained undecided on the venue for impeachment trials.

The Virginia Plan, which set the agenda for the Convention, initially contemplated using the judicial branch. Again, though, the founders chose to follow the British example, where the House of Commons brought charges against officers and the House of Lords considered them at trial.

Ultimately, the founders decided that during presidential impeachment trials, the House would manage the prosecution, while the Chief Justice would preside over the Senate during the trial. The founders also addressed what crimes constituted grounds for impeachment. Treason and bribery were obvious choices, but George Mason of Virginia thought those crimes did not include a large number of punishable offenses against the state. But subsequent experience demonstrated the revised phrase failed to clarify what constituted impeachable offenses.

The House brings impeachment charges against federal officials as part of its oversight and investigatory responsibilities. Individual Members of the House can introduce impeachment resolutions like ordinary bills, or the House could initiate proceedings by passing a resolution authorizing an inquiry.

The Committee on the Judiciary ordinarily has jurisdiction over impeachments, but special committees investigated charges before the Judiciary Committee was created in The committee then chooses whether to pursue articles of impeachment against the accused official and report them to the full House. If the articles are adopted by simple majority vote , the House appoints Members by resolution to manage the ensuing Senate trial on its behalf.

These managers act as prosecutors in the Senate and are usually members of the Judiciary Committee. The number of managers has varied across impeachment trials but has traditionally been an odd number. The House has initiated impeachment proceedings more than 60 times but less than a third have led to full impeachments. Just eight—all federal judges—have been convicted and removed from office by the Senate. Impeachment is when a legislative body formally levels charges - which have to be very serious - against a high official of government, including the president.

It is not a criminal trial but a process to remove a high-level official, usually only a president in the US. The US constitution says the president "shall be removed from office on impeachment for, and conviction of, treason, bribery, or other high crimes or misdemeanours". Christopher Steele: Confessions of a former British spy.

Christopher Steele: Russia 'at war' with UK, says former British spy - who was left wedding rings 'threat'. Anybody can initiate the process, from a member of the house to a judge or even a public petition. A simple majority vote is then required from the house for the process to proceed to the senate, which has the power to try impeachments to ultimately oust a president from office.

A collection of house members are made "managers" to present the prosecution case while the impeached official has the right to mount a defence with their own lawyers. It is usually overseen by the vice-president but for a presidential impeachment the chief justice of Supreme Court presides. The senate then decides on whether to convict or acquit, with two thirds - 67 senators - needed to finally remove the accused.

Three occupants of the Oval Office have seen impeachment proceedings launched against them, but no president has been successfully removed from office through the process. The Democrat president was impeached in after clashing with congress then controlled by the Radical Republicans, a faction of the Republican party over his ideas for Reconstruction, the rebuilding of the southern states after the South's defeat in the Civil War.

He was let off the hook after receiving 35 guilty votes on three issues - just one too few votes to get the two thirds majority. To stop any further embarrassment the Radical Republicans halted any more votes, saving his presidency.