The Law of Presidential Impeachment: A Guide for the Engaged Citizen

by Michael J. Gerhardt

Overview

A clear and comprehensive overview of presidential impeachment from a leading expert in the field

As a result of Donald Trump’s presidency, impeachment was once again thrust into the spotlight of American political discussion. However, its history goes back to the very founding of the nation, when American colonists, remembering their grievances against their former king, entrenched the process in their new Constitution.

The Law of Presidential Impeachment breaks down both the law and politics of this process, providing a comprehensive, nonpartisan, and up-to-date explanation of the Constitution’s various mechanisms for holding presidents accountable for their misdeeds. Based on a lifetime of scholarly research, as well as unique experience as a witness and consultant in the impeachment trials of Bill Clinton and Donald Trump, Michael J. Gerhardt’s new book takes the reader back to the basics of presidential impeachments. Rather than provide reasons for or against impeaching particular presidents, he explains the law and procedures that govern impeachment, examining a number of significant, yet under-explored, issues and themes. Gerhardt offers new perspectives on the subject, arguing that it cannot be properly understood in a vacuum, but must instead be viewed in the context of its coordination with such other mechanisms as criminal prosecutions, censure, elections, congressional oversight, and the Fourteenth and Twenty-Fifth Amendments.

The Law of Presidential Impeachment will be an invaluable, accessible guide for future generations, giving them a succinct yet remarkably nuanced understanding of this core aspect of our executive branch and overarching governmental system.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781479824717
Publisher:	New York University Press
Publication date:	01/09/2024
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Michael J. Gerhardt is Burton Craige Distinguished Professor of Jurisprudence at the University of North Carolina Law School and author of six books, including The Forgotten Presidents: Their Untold Constitutional Legacy, which The Financial Times selected as one of the best non-fiction books of 2013.

Editorial Reviews

"Gerhardt, a nationally recognized expert on this topic, is the exact scholar needed to write this concise and accessible guide to all things impeachment. This will certainly be the new definitive text on the subject."

Lori Cox Han

"An accessible and insightful tour through American presidential impeachments by the foremost scholar in the field. On a topic that stirs up political passions, Michael Gerhardt provides sober judgement."

Keith Whittington

"A sharp, informed treatment of impeachment, for experts and newcomers alike, incorporating what has been learned as a result of recent events, and with a detailed discussion of the Trump impeachment and associated events."

Cass R. Sunstein

★ 12/22/2023

U.S. Constitutional scholar Gerhardt (Univ. of North Carolina Law School; The Forgotten Presidents) scrutinizes the text, history, and application of the impeachment process laid out in Articles I and II. He describes the founders' vision as a two-stage process. Exercising its grant of "sole power," the House of Representatives has impeached 20 people, including 14 federal judges, who had been accused of treason, bribery, and more. The Senate, on the other hand, has convicted nine judges. The author's focus falls on detailing and evaluating the proceedings against the three impeached presidents—Andrew Johnson in 1868; Bill Clinton in 1998, and Donald Trump twice, in 2019 and 2021. Two themes dominate his analysis: the tug-of-war between Congress and the president and the founders' intent to safeguard the nation from abuse of power by assuring that no person is above the law. He finds that extreme partisanship has broken the presidential impeachment process, leaving the nation unprotected from abuse of power. VERDICT A clear and comprehensive primer about the culture and values required to operate constitutional government as the country's founders intended. This is, indeed, an imperative read for engaged citizens.—Thomas J. Davis

Library Journal

2023-09-05
A well-informed look at a crucial safeguard against the abuse of power.

The impeachment of a president veers between a serious constitutional issue and hyperbolic political theater. Gerhardt is a respected professor of jurisprudence and the author of a series of books on constitutional law and legacy. In his latest book, he seeks to explain the legal principles and procedures involved in the impeachment process. The provision that the conviction of a president in the Senate requires a two-thirds majority has meant, in practice, that no president has been convicted. The closest was Nixon, who resigned when it became clear that enough Republicans in the Senate were willing to vote to remove him. Since that time, there has been no real possibility that a president would be convicted, despite Trump’s two impeachments. No matter the evidence, it seems, neither party will let the other win. This was the case with Clinton and with Trump (both times). An impeachment vote by the House, where only a simple majority is needed, might have symbolic value, but symbolism is the last resort of the unconvincing. Gerhardt often lets his disdain of Trump show through, and in the section on his second impeachment, the author’s dispassionate tone dissipates. He largely dismisses a crucial point about the House vote: that it took place with no committee investigation and minimal debate. This is an important precedent, and it deserved more attention. Gerhardt insists that the Senate trial was legal—although Chief Justice Roberts apparently disagreed—even though Trump was no longer president. Yes, it might have been legal, but despite Trump’s antics and lack of decorum, it seemed pointless at the time. The book is a useful reference, but more restraint from the author would have made it much better.

A comprehensive analysis of the mechanisms of impeachment, providing context for recent events.

Kirkus Reviews