The Controversial Transition Process from Investigating the President to Impeaching Him
St. John's Journal of Legal Commentary, Vol. 14, p. 111, 1999
25 Pages Posted: 19 Mar 2009
Date Written: Summer 1999
Abstract
In the decade preceding the impeachment of President Clinton, Congressional committees and independent counsels reshaped the presidential impeachment process. During that time, these committees and counsels, through intense and thorough investigations, created "The specially investigated President", a new legal status conferred upon the subject of examination. In this article, the author explores the legal and political consequences of President Clinton's impeachment, particularly Congress' transition from investigating the President to impeaching him. Analyzing the basic elements of the transition process from the viewpoints of Clinton "accusers" and "defenders," the author offers insight into how the two groups shaped and viewed the changing investigative and impeachment process. In so doing, he demonstrates how the Clinton impeachment process worked to reorient both the relationship between the branches of government and the interaction between criminal justice and politics. Although the issue of whether impeachment questions should be resolved by strict adherence to the constitution or through public debate remains unanswered, the author brings this debate to the forefront.
Keywords: impeachment, "specially investigated president," President Clinton, Kenneth Starr, Independent Counsel, House Judiciary Committee, Monica Lewinsky, Jones v. Clinton, Linda Tripp, perjury, Impeachment Clause
JEL Classification: K39, H19, H89
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation