Liberal Harvard Law Professor Delivers Pelosi And The Media Some Very Bad News About Impeachment
A Liberal Law Professor at Harvard University delivered some very bad news to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi on Thursday evening and he was 100% right.
Noah Feldman who is a law professor at Harvard University took the Speaker of the House to task saying “an indefinite delay[in sending articles of impeachment] would pose a serious problem”
Here’s what Feldman wrote:
But an indefinite delay would pose a serious problem. Impeachment as contemplated by the Constitution does not consist merely of the vote by the House, but of the process of sending the articles to the Senate for trial. Both parts are necessary to make an impeachment under the Constitution: The House must actually send the articles and send managers to the Senate to prosecute the impeachment. And the Senate must actually hold a trial.
In other words impeachment is a process not a vote. Feldman correctly states, “impeachment” under the Constitution means the House sending its approved articles of to the Senate, with House managers standing up in the Senate and saying the president is impeached.”
The Harvard Liberal law professor even scolded the media and stated:
As for the headlines we saw after the House vote saying, “TRUMP IMPEACHED,” those are a media shorthand, not a technically correct legal statement. So far, the House has voted to impeach (future tense) Trump. He isn’t impeached (past tense) until the articles go to the Senate and the House members deliver the message.
Feldman said that if the House doesn’t send the articles of impeachment to the Senate for trial it would deviate from constitutional protocol. It would also mean that the President wasn’t really impeached under the Constitution, and it would deny the president the ability to defend himself in the Senate and the Constitution mandates that happen.
“Strictly speaking, “impeachment” occurred – and occurs — when the articles of impeachment are presented to the Senate for trial. And at that point, the Senate is obliged by the Constitution to hold a trial,” said Feldman.
If House Democrats do not send the articles of impeachment there can be no trial meaning, the “sole power to impeach” is violated. Also, if the House doesn’t send the articles of impeachment the President could and rightfully say he was never impeached.
Feldman wrote a great pice and you can read the whole his entire piece here.