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Writer's pictureBob McKnight

A Constitutional Trial


Post # 97 , Bob McKnight's Florida Political Commentary


There is so much confusion about the potential Impeachment of President Trump, it is important to carefully follow the Constitution and the law in the process. I have tried to do that with my previous post on the Impeachment process, citing the Constitution, legal definitions and using the testimony of a first hand witness and the President himself.


Assuming the House Impeaches the President, the process should then move the legislation to the Senate for a fair and deliberate trial. If the House does not believe the Senate will give the President a fair trial, it could be argued that the Impeachment should not be sent to the Senate until the Senate demonstrates it is prepared to do so. Here is the process:


  • The Constitution provides only the Senate can provide a trial to the Impeached, and the trail must be fair.


  • Although hard to prove, all Senate Jurors should be impartial while hearing the evidence for and against the President. If any Senators admit to not being a fair juror, they should abstain from voting or be prohibited from voting by the presiding Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. This may disqualify Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky and Senator Graham of South Carolina from voting.


  • If any witnesses are called by the Senate, they should only be for the evidence the House has sent the Senate.


  • The Constitutional test of Impeachment guilt is "treason, bribery or other high crimes and misdemeanors," which is not further defined, other than precedent. Accordingly, the Senate can somewhat define guilt in an Impeachment Charge as they wish. If they vote yes, the President is guilty and removed from office. If they vote no, he is not guilty of the charges, and retains office.


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