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Posts published in “Day: October 2, 2007”

Impeachment fever

What with so many people in the Northwest calling for impeachment of President Bush - albeit that most of them are on the west side of the Cascades - there shouldn't be a surprise at the new web site calling for impeachment of Idaho Senator Larry Craig.

What they want - not that they're going to get this either - is expulsion. Impeachment, though rarely undertaken at all, generally applies to officers of the executive and judicial branches. No member of Congress ever has been kicked out via impeachment.

Wikipedia does have some useful history on the subject, though, pointing out that there's some constitutional question of whether members of Congress are impeachable at all. In the nation's history one senator, William Blount of Tennessee, has been impeached by the U.S. House. But it was a very long time ago, the circumstances were peculiar, and seem to have set a precedent against impeachment of members of Congress. Here's the background:

In 1797 his land speculations in western lands led him into serious financial difficulties. That same year, he also apparently concocted a plan to incite the Creek and Cherokee Indians to aid the British in conquering the Spanish territory of West Florida. A letter he wrote alluding to the plan fell into the hands of President John Adams, who turned it over to the Senate on July 3, 1797. Five days later, that body voted 25 to 1 to expel Blount. The United States House of Representatives impeached him, but the Senate dropped the charges in 1799 on the grounds that no further action could be taken beyond his dismissal, which set an important precedent for the future with regard to the limitations on actions which could be taken by Congress against its members and former members.

So, these guys can call for expulsion, if they want. But don't hold your breath on that happening either.