History of impeachments of U.S. presidents
Donald Trump joins a small group of fellow presidents now that he's the subject of an official impeachment inquiry in the House of Representatives.
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Donald Trump joins a small group of fellow presidents now that he's the subject of an official impeachment inquiry in the House of Representatives. Only three of his predecessors underwent similar proceedings: Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton, who were acquitted after trials in the Senate, and Richard Nixon, who resigned to avoid being impeached in connection with the Watergate scandal.
David Crary Associated Press
President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Iraqi President Barham Salih at the Lotte New York Palace hotel during the United Nations General Assembly, Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2019, in New York.
Evan Vucci Associated Press
A brief look at past presidential impeachment proceedings: BILL CLINTON
The Republican-controlled House voted in October 1998 to begin impeachment proceedings against Clinton after months of controversy over his relationship with White House intern Monica Lewinsky.
David Crary Associated Press
In this Dec. 19, 1998, photo, President Bill Clinton looks on as Vice President Gore addresses members of congress outside the Oval Office after the House of Representatives voted to impeach the president.
Doug Mills Associated Press
That vote was triggered by two rounds of testimony given by Clinton earlier in the year. In January, he denied having a sexual relationship with Lewinsky; in August, under questioning from independent counsel Kenneth Starr before a federal grand jury, he testified that he engaged in an inappropriate relationship with Lewinsky.
David Crary Associated Press
A bar patron watches videotaped footage of President Clinton and White House intern Monic Lewinsky, Aug. 17, 1998, in Philadelphia.
Dan Loh Associated Press
Clinton was impeached on Dec. 19, 1998, on the grounds of perjury to a grand jury and obstruction of justice. A Senate trial against Clinton commenced on Jan. 7, 1999, and unfolded over four weeks, with Chief Justice William Rehnquist presiding.
David Crary Aaaociated Press
In this Feb. 13, 1999 photo, a woman views newspaper headlines announcing the acquittal of President Bill Clinton in Sacramento, Calif. Donald Trump joins a small group of fellow presidents now that he’s the subject of an official impeachment inquiry in the House of Representatives. Only three of his predecessors underwent similar proceedings: Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton, who were acquitted after trials in the Senate, and Richard Nixon, who resigned to avoid being impeached in connection with the Watergate scandal.
Bob Galbraith Associated Press
On Feb. 12, the Senate voted to acquit Clinton on both charges — falling far short of the 67 votes needed to convict. Only 45 senators voted for conviction on the perjury charge, and 50 for the obstruction charge.
David Crary Associated Press
RICHARD NIXON
The House initiated an impeachment process against Nixon in February 1974, authorizing the Judiciary Committee to investigate whether grounds existed to impeach him of high crimes and misdemeanors. The charges mostly related to Watergate — shorthand for the 1972 break-in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters and the Nixon administration's attempts to cover up its involvement.
In this April 29, 1974 photo, President Richard M. Nixon points to the transcripts of the White House tapes after he announced during a nationally-televised speech that he would turn over the transcripts to House impeachment investigators, in Washington.
Archive Associated Press
In July 1974, the Judiciary Committee approved three articles of impeachment against Nixon — for obstruction of justice, abuse of power and contempt of Congress.
David Crary Associated Press
Reporters Bob Woodward, right, and Carl Bernstein, whose reporting of the Watergate case won a Pulitzer Prize, sit in the newsroom of the Washington Post, May 7, 1973. Woodward’s name is synonymous with anonymous sources, “Deep Throat” and reporting that uncovered a scandal that brought down a presidency. Some three decades after Watergate, the outing of Woodward in the CIA leak investigation underscores the change in anonymous sourcing and revives the criticism of the media’s use of unnamed officials to curry favor.
Archive Associated Press
W. Mark Felt, a Twin Falls High School and University of Idaho graduate, who was identified Tuesday as Deep Throat, the famous anonymous source of reporter Bob Woodward in the Watergate investigation. Felt attended high school in Twin Falls, graduating in 1931, and he graduated from the UI in 1935.
Archive
Before the full House could vote on the articles of impeachment, a previously undisclosed audio tape was released that made clear Nixon had a role in the cover-up. He resigned from office on Aug. 9, 1974.
David Crary Associated Press
An undated portrait of Andrew Johnson, the 17th U.S. president.
MACMILLAN Associated Press
ANDREW JOHNSON
Johnson's impeachment in 1868 was the culmination of a bitter dispute between the president and the Republican-controlled House over Reconstruction following the Civil War.
The specific trigger for impeachment was Johnson's attempt to fire Secretary of War Edwin Stanton, who favored a tougher approach than Johnson toward the defeated South. Nine of 11 impeachment articles concerned the head of the War Department.
The House voted to impeach Johnson on March 3, 1868. Three days later, the Senate convened a formal impeachment trial, with Supreme Court Chief Justice Salmon P. Chase presiding.
On May 16, after an often-stormy trial, the Senate failed to convict Johnson on one of the 11 articles, falling short of the necessary two-thirds majority by one vote. After a 10-day recess, two more votes failed by the same margin, and the trial was adjourned.
David Crary Associated Press
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