Although the impeachment of US President Donald Trump may not be completed when he finishes his first term in office by January 20, eventual conviction could still prohibit him from holding public office again in the future, US legal experts told Sputnik
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 12th January, 2021) Although the impeachment of US President Donald Trump may not be completed when he finishes his first term in office by January 20, eventual conviction could still prohibit him from holding public office again in the future, US legal experts told Sputnik.
Democrats in the US House of Representatives introduced a resolution to formally impeach Trump for "high Crimes and Misdemeanors by inciting violence against the Government of the United States" on Monday.
The resolution accused Trump of repeatedly issuing false statements by claiming that the US presidential election results were the product of widespread fraud and should not be accepted by the American people.
Trump reiterating such false claims when he addressed a crowd at the Ellipse in Washington on January 6 moments before members of the US Congress were to certify the results of the US presidential election, the resolution said.
"Thus incited by President Trump, members of the crowd he had addressed.... unlawfully breached and vandalized the Capitol, injured and killed law enforcement personnel, menaced Members of the Congress, the Vice President, and Congressional personnel, and engaged in other violent, deadly, destructive, and seditious acts," the resolution said.
Five people, including a police officer, were killed in the riot that took place on the Capitol on January 6. The last time the Capitol was stormed was when British troops marched into Washington and set fire to the building in 1814.
With eight days left before Joe Biden's inauguration, the impeachment proceedings against Trump may not be completed before he leaves office.
However, US legal experts pointed out that the impeachment could continue even after Trump leaves the White House and could have serious consequences that would bar him from running for president in the future.
"I doubt there is enough time to complete the process before Trump leaves office, but most people think the impeachment could continue. The consequences of conviction can include the loss of some benefits and a prohibition on holding office in the future, so it would still make a difference," Kermit Roosevelt, a law professor at the University of Pennsylvania Law school, told Sputnik.
Under the US constitution, conviction of insurrection charges would prohibit Trump from running for public office in the future, the expert explained.
"The only way to stop Trump from running again is to impeach and convict him, or, possibly, to declare that he engaged in insurrection and is ineligible under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment [of the US Constitution]," he said.
According to Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, a person would be banned from holding public office if the person "shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof."
As long as the impeachment proceedings are launched before January 20, they will be continued after Trump leaves office, the expert added.
Trump was previously impeached by the US House of Representatives over abuse of power and obstruction of Congress in December 2019. But the US Senate, where the Republican Party enjoyed a majority, acquitted him in February 2020.
Efforts from the Democratic Party to impeach Trump once again could face similar hurdles in the US Senate this time, Professor Roosevelt pointed out.
"The House, with a majority of Democrats and needing only a simple majority, could certainly impeach Trump. Conviction requires a 2/3 majority in the Senate, and while I think the Democrats might get 4-5 Republicans, they would probably still fall short of conviction," he said.
The Democratic Party secured three more seats in the US Senate during the 2020 Elections. When new members of the US Senate are sworn in by January 20, the Democratic Party will secure 50 seats (including two independents who caucus with the Democrats) in the US Senate, while the Republican Party would retain 50 seats.
Professor Roosevelt explained what it would take for the Democrats to secure enough votes in the US Senate to convict Trump.
"They need enough support to get to 67 Senators, which would be 17 Republicans. That's a lot, and I don't think they have that much," he said.
During the impeachment trial in February 2020, only one Republican Senator voted to convict Trump on the charges of abuse of power.
Nevertheless, a number of Republican Senators have publicly condemned the riot in the Capitol on January 6, when their personal safety was threatened by the violent mob. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a long-time Trump supporter, called the incident "failed insurrection."
In an op-ed in the New York Times, Tom Reed, a Republican in the US House of Representatives, said he would join other lawmakers to introduce a resolution to censure Trump on Tuesday and look at alternatives that could allow Congress to bar Trump from holding Federal office in the future.
