Flame — HabitableZone

Flame » in reply to I thought the phrase was "-high- crimes and misdemeanors"?

My point was not to argue syntax
azstrummer — (archived)

It's simply that it's this broad definition that procedurally requires absolutely no preponderance of evidence as would be necessary in a normal court of law. The people doing the proceedings are not the judicial branch. They're politicians and can make whatever charges they so please with no real burden of proof. The normal rules of a courtroom really don't apply to Congress.

As much as I thought it was a stupid move, the Congress had every right to boot Bill Clinton out of office even if their charges were simply that he had bad taste in women. Obviously there's political fallout for using your power like that but it's perfectly legal.

There's a real reason why no president has ever been successfully removed from office but it has nothing to do with how criminal their particular act was. It's simply that the political will buckled when it came time for votes or the guy resigned prior to the inevitable.

Art

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