What Does the Presidential Impeachment Actually Mean?

Story by Jaslene Barnes. Picture courtesy of CNN.

JAN. 21, 2020: One day as I was sitting down to watch the news about Donald Trump getting impeached, I wondered if people really know what impeachment means.

What does it really mean for a President to be impeached? I decided that to answer this question I had to get on Youtube to do some research. After watching videos by Vox, ABC News and Bloomberg Markets and Finance this is what I learned.  

The President, Vice President and all civil officers can be removed from office on impeachment for treason, bribery and high crimes or misconduct. The people who lead the impeachment are members of the House of Representatives and the Senate. 

This is how the impeachment process works. First, the House of Representatives decides whether or not to bring charges. Then they deliberate like a grand jury. After that the Senate conducts a trial and decides whether or not the President should get impeached/removed from office. This is presided over by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court and requires a ⅔ vote to remove a President from office. There have been only three other presidents who have gone through the impeachment process. First there was Andrew Johnson, who was impeached but acquitted by the Senate. Then Richard Nixon got impeached for obstruction of justice, abuse of power and contempt of Congress, and later resigned. In the 90’s, Bill Clinton was impeached for perjury and obstruction of justice, but was also acquitted by the Senate. 

I believe President Trump should get impeached for abuse of power because he tried to manipulate the 2020 elections when he pressured Ukraine to investigate one of his chief political rivals and former Vice-President Joe Biden. This shows that Donald Trump is a dishonest person who cares more about himself than the American people. 

Now that you know what impeachment is and how it works, do you think President Trump should be impeached? 

Jaslene Barnes is a 6th grade scholar at Friendship Woodridge International School.