Cbies/Shutterstock.comAlexander Hamilton, The Federalist, and the Power of Impeachment
Statue of Alexander Hamilton at U.S. Treasury Department, by James Frasier (Image: Bill Perry/Shutterstock.com).Taking Impeachment Seriously
The framers of the Constitution understood impeachment as a vital, potent legislative check on abuse or misuse of power or other serious misconduct.
George T. Brown, sergeant at arms of the Senate, serving the summons on President Andrew Johnson, from Harper's Weekly, March 28, 1868. Courtesy Library of CongressDefining Impeachment Up
The red herring of impeachment is forcing the rhetorical argument about the swollen executive to unhelpful extremes. Those in a rhetorical rush to impeachment, especially those who have been threatening it for years, may well be guilty of defining the ultimate constitutional sanction down. The proper response is to argue on prudential grounds against it. It is not—as many are doing—to define impeachment up.
