Time: Sat Mar 15 16:57:48 1997
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Date: Sat, 15 Mar 1997 16:50:58 -0800
To: (Recipient list suppressed)
From: Paul Andrew Mitchell [address in tool bar]
Subject: SLS: [jus-dare] Impeachment: Basics & Application (fwd)
<snip>
>*Jus Dare*
>Impeachment: Basics & Application
>
>
>Impeachment is merely the first step in the process of getting the
>crooks out of office. It is spelled out in the Constitution of the
>United States, and applies to the removal of the president,
>vice-president, or other government official from office upon
>conviction of "treason, bribery, or other high crimes and
>misdemeanors." The House of Representatives has "the sole power of
>impeachment." That means the power of bringing charges.
>
>The Senate has "the sole power to try all impeachments." After the
>House has impeached the crook, a two-thirds vote is required in the
>Senate for conviction. Not much of anything happens simply because of
>the impeachment itself -- but *nothing* happens without it.
>
>When the president is to be tried, the chief justice -- in
>this case, another prime candidate for impeachment himself, Renquist
>-- presides. Conviction in an impeachment proceeding results in
>removal from office and disqualification to hold "any office of
>honor, trust, or profit under the United States." No other penalty is
>the result of impeachment.
>
>However, a person convicted in an impeachment is subject to further
>"indictment, trial, judgment, and punishment according to Law."
>Whether the impeached evildoer hangs is not a consideration in the
>impeachment and removal process. It was intentionally designed that
>way so that the weak of heart would have no excuse for trying to stop
>an impeachment, based on "considerations of mercy," or "moral or
>ethical uncertainty about the punishment."
>
>The founders recognized that officers thought to be guilty of
>significant misconduct should be tried and removed. They did not want
>the procedure to be too easy, nor the penalty too quickly applied, so
>they made it a requirement for a two-thirds vote for conviction in the
>Senate, and stipulated that impeachment could only be possible for
>"treason, bribery, and other high crimes and misdemeandors."
>
>George Mason suggested that "maladministration" be included as a
>ground for impeachment, but both James Madison and Gouverneur Morris
>objected that the result would be that tenure in office would be at
>the pleasure of the Senate. God forbid. As weak as impeachment may
>seem, it is in fact a good protection for the people that the
>"representation" we send to Congress do not have more power. They
>would most likely abuse it.
>
>Currently, the discussion is applied to president Clinton and vp Gore.
>By their own admissions, they have more than satisfied the conditions
>for impeachment. The only other president impeached was Andrew
>Johnson. Nixon had impeachment proceedings initiated against him, but
>of course he resigned his office, effectively fulfilling his own
>sentence. (Remember, impeachment and Senate trial are merely the tools
>to get, and keep, the person out of office.)
>
>More to the point of the *Jus Dare* list, Supreme Court Justice Samuel
>Chase was impeached in the early 1800s, but his acquittal in 1805
>effectively halted the use of impeachment to remove judges for what
>has been called "merely political reasons," but can be more broadly
>applied to their inability to make sound *legal* decisions.
>
>The only impeachment trials for justices in this era have been for
>"extra-judicial" crimes and then only under the most extreme
>circumstances. The awkward and snail-paced process of impeachment is
>considered unsuited to the removal of a "merely" corrupt judge.
>Nevertheless, the Constitution specifies that judges hold office
>"during good behavior," so impeachment remains the only means by which
>a federal judge may be removed, and the only formal means of wrist
>slapping. In other words, impeachment is the only way to "send a
>message" that their behavior is *not* good. So we, the people, need
>to apply a lot of pressure to initiate that process against the
>perverts in the Spider Court, as well as the perverse president and
>vp. A furious populous will inspire even the most inanimate and
>equally corrupt Congress to act.
>
>There is a lot of discussion about the motives and effectiveness of
>impeachment. There has also been discussion about the Spider Court's
>potential for usurping authority in impeachment cases. It seems
>pretty logical to conclude, however, that our Spider Court will cower
>if two-thirds of the Senate has voted to convict. After all, they have
>proven themselves repeatedly to be pawns, opining to find grace among
>the powers in the fed.
>
>Dave Delany
>
>---------------------------------------------------
>"Let My People Go!"
>
>----------------------------------------------------------------------
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> PO Box 212 Conklin NY 13748
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========================================================================
Paul Andrew, Mitchell, B.A., M.S. : Counselor at Law, federal witness
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