C13. Removing a President by Impeachment: The Ultimate but Elusive Check on Presidential Power

This course will explore the constitutional framework, theory, procedure, and history of the authority of Congress to remove a sitting president by impeachment. Topics will include the intent of the Founding Fathers in adding the impeachment mechanism to the Constitution, impeachment and separation of powers, the constitutional standard for impeachment, the responsibilities of the House and the Senate, the procedures governing impeachment inquiries, articles of impeachment and trials, historical case studies of impeachment and the prospects of an impeachment of President Trump.

INSTRUCTOR: John S. Ross, III (Jack) holds degrees from Yale University and the University of Virginia School of Law and served as Adjunct Professor of Law at Washington & Lee University. He has taught a number of courses in the WISE Program on constitutional law topics.

REQUIRED BOOK: Impeachment: What Everyone Needs to Know, Michael J. Gerhardt, Oxford Univ Press 2018. ISBN# 9780190903657.

OPTIONAL BOOK: Impeachment: The Case Against Donald Trump. Neal Katyal. Houghton Mifflin, to be released in November 2019.