The Federal Impeachment Process [Hardcover]

Michael J. Gerhardt (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 11, 1995

This is an analysis of the theory and practice of impeachment since the Watergate era. Litigation in the intervening period over the Senate's removal of three judges has raised doubta about Congress's interest in and capacity for conducting efficient, fair impeachment proceedings, as well as about whether congressional judgements regarding the impeachability of federal judges are shielded from review by other branches. The book argues that impeachment is a far more effective process then commonly supposed and that it constitutes a special non-reviewable power confined solely to Congress for punishing certain executive and judicial misconduct. Without ignoring the implications of such a view for future rulings in separation of powers disputes, the author seeks primarily to establish impeachment's uniqueness by conveying a sense of its consitutional, historical and political dimensions. In particular, he provides in Part I a comprehensive historical analysis of the impeachment process. In Part II he traces the practical problems and most troubling administrative difficulties in actual impeachment proceedings conducted by the House of Representatives and the Senate. Part III resolves the most significant constitutional issues recurring in the federal impeachment process, and Part IV examines proposed constitutional amendments and statutory proposals for reforming the federal impeachment process.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Lucid and thoughtfully argued.... [This] is a timely and well-researched book that should be of great interest to a broad audience of political scientists, legal scholars, historians and students of the federal judicial process. -- Review

Product Details

• Hardcover: 280 pages
• Publisher: Princeton Univ Pr; 1St Edition edition (December 11, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0691032955
• ISBN-13: 978-0691032955
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,948,955 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Michael J. Gerhardt is the Samuel Ashe Distinguished Professor of Constitutional Law and the Director of the UNC Center on Law and Government at UNC-Chapel Hill. He has degrees from Yale University (BA), Londson School of Economics (M.Sc.) and the University of Chicago (JD). He lives in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, with his wife Deborah and their three sons Ben, Daniel, and Noah.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Well written overview for both lawyers and general readers., October 5, 1998

By 

Karen Lee "Karen" (New York, New York, USA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: The Federal Impeachment Process (Hardcover)

Thought provoking and clearily written. While primarily limited in scope to impeachment of federal judges (because more cases exist), the information on the origin of the impeachment provisions in the federal Constitution and the thinking behind the adoption of the provisions by the framers is relevant to issues of presidential impeachment. The reader will find that it is useful as a guide to following the current hearings of the House Judiciary Committee as the members refer to precedents and history.

Prof. Gerhardt includes excellent signposts for further research into the innumerable Constitutional questions raised. The work is a well-constructed combination of law text and book for the general reader with a scholarly turn of mind. Each section is prefaced by a brief statement of its objective of the sort found at the start of scholarly papers. The annotations and bibliography arewell done.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A thorough and well-written guide to impeachment, August 23, 1998

By 

Glenn H. Reynolds - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Federal Impeachment Process (Hardcover)

The last major treatments of impeachment were written by Raoul Berger and Charles Black a quarter century ago. Yet, in fact, quite a bit has happened since then: though no Presidents have been impeached (so far), cases involving federal judges in particular have made new law and raised new questions. Gerhardt's book goes into more depth than either Black or Berger, and provides an excellent guide to a wide range of issues. Gerhardt is more a Blackian than a Bergerian -- heavily influenced by structure and relationship, and prone to avoid judicial review of impeachment in most circumstances. An excellent book, and well-written.

5.0 out of 5 stars EXCELLENT SOURCE, October 7, 2007

By 

Robert W. Smith "Robert Smith, Ph.D." (Virginia, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Federal Impeachment Process (Hardcover)

The Federal Impeachment Process is described in this book. Fortunately, we have not utilized this method of removal often, so there is not a lot of precident established. While this is one of the three most authoritative sources on the subject, I wish that the author had described in greater detail some of the precidents in English law, the thinking of the framers, contrasts with state impeachment procedures, and a more thorough procedural analysis of impeachment cases brought before the House and Senate ... Next book, maybe? At any rate, this is an excellent book, one certainly worth the used price!