Letter to the Editor: Trump’s impeachment is not unconstitutional
There is a lot of purposeful and deliberate deception on what the US Constitutional powers and procedures are of impeachment. Best place to start is at the source. Have you ever read the US Constitution? I know a very large minority of voters has not, so here is a simple explanation.
There are a few sections in the US Constitution that describe the impeachment process. In Article 1 Section 2, it clearly states, “The House of Representatives… shall have the sole Power of Impeachment.” This means that the House acts like a grand jury: the impeachment managers present the case to the House members, and based on the evidence, vote to either impeach (i.e. indict) the official or not.
In Article 1 Section 3, it states, ‘’[T]he Senate shall have the sole Power to try all Impeachments.” In this section, the Senate conducts the trial including calling witnesses. Failure to call prosecution and/or defense witnesses means that the Senate agrees with the House that the person is guilty. Once all testimony is heard, the Senate votes guilty or not guilty.
In the same Section and same paragraph, it states, “When sitting for that Purpose, they shall be on Oath or Affirmation. When the President of the United States is tried, the Chief Justice shall preside: And no Person shall be convicted without the Concurrence of two thirds of the Members present.” It is clear that the Chief Justice must preside over the trial. Chief Justice has violated his constitutional oath to defend the US Constitution by not presiding over the impeachment trial. To me, this too is impeachable and Chief Justice Roberts must be removed from office.
Also in that Section, it states, “Judgment in Cases of Impeachment shall not extend further than to removal from Office, and disqualification to hold and enjoy any Office of honor, Trust or Profit under the United States: but the Party convicted shall nevertheless be liable and subject to Indictment, Trial, Judgment and Punishment, according to Law.” This section is the ‘sentencing’ part of a conviction. Even if a president is out of office, the other sentencing components can still be enacted. This also allows a treasonous insurrectionist president to be arrested and tried, for example.
In Article II Section 2, it states, “The President… shall have Power to grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offences against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment.” I personally feel that if a president is impeached, then he or she loses the power to issue pardons until the trial in the Senate and votes not guilty. Many disagree with this position – it has yet to be adjudicated.
Of course, Republicans are saying that the impeachment of a president after they leave office is unconstitutional. This is an unfounded and ridiculous argument. The House officially impeached Trump on January 13, 2021, while he was still in office and conforming to the Constitution. Historically, several officials were impeached post-departure from office, including a judge, a former senator and a secretary, but a president has never faced a post-presidency impeachment. So there is precedence. And what’s important is preventing Trump from ever holding office again.
Right-wing pundits and even right-wing Congress members continue to lie to their voter base that impeachment is unconstitutional. The above discussion clearly shows impeachment is permissible and warranted against Trump.
One can only hope that, upon reading the Constitution and the discussion above, the citizen Republican can finally understand that your elected Republican officials are lying to you. When anybody ever lies to me about something important, I no longer value or trust anything they ever say again. The citizen Republican should think hard on this and act accordingly.
Mark Mihevc
Graeagle