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Liberty Belle

(9,537 posts)
Sat Jan 11, 2020, 06:35 PM Jan 2020

Supreme Court can review an unfair impeachment trial


This is a fascinating read. The Supreme Court previously heard a case in which a judge challenged his impeachment. While the court held that particular impeachment was fair, several justices wrote that the Supreme Court could weigh in potentially in the future if the Senate ever engaged in an impeachment trial that was blatantly unfair, such as deciding whether to impeach on a coin toss, or simply deciding to convict because someone was a "bad guy" without hearing evidence.

“In such circumstances,” Justice Souter wrote, “the Senate’s action might be so far beyond the scope of its constitutional authority, and the consequent impact on the Republic so great, as to merit a judicial response despite the prudential concerns that would ordinarily counsel silence.”

Today we face a similar scenario; a Senate willing to find a president not guilty without hearing evidence. So it's not beyond the pale to believe Dems might ask the Supreme Court to weigh in. Are they willing to forever sanction kangaroo courts for impeachment of a president by rubber stamping such utter lawlessness?

https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/the-supreme-court-can-review-an-unfair-impeachment-trial/2020/01/10/00dae97c-32fa-11ea-91fd-82d4e04a3fac_story.html
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Supreme Court can review an unfair impeachment trial (Original Post) Liberty Belle Jan 2020 OP
If that's the case, I wonder if the Supreme Court can review articles of impeachment Sonny Mirviss Jan 2020 #1
Bookmarking for later Bayard Jan 2020 #2
Very interesting. kentuck Jan 2020 #3
Wishful thinking. onenote Jan 2020 #4
 

Sonny Mirviss

(77 posts)
1. If that's the case, I wonder if the Supreme Court can review articles of impeachment
Sat Jan 11, 2020, 06:45 PM
Jan 2020

Once they have been submitted to the Senate then too?

It wouldn't surprise me if Trump is in a hurry to get the proceedings to the Senate for just that ploy.

He does go to court for everything else. I would bet money that he tries to tie this up in court too.

kentuck

(111,110 posts)
3. Very interesting.
Sun Jan 12, 2020, 02:18 PM
Jan 2020

Perhaps the Democrats should prepare for that possibility? Be ready to take it to the Supreme Court.

onenote

(42,778 posts)
4. Wishful thinking.
Sun Jan 12, 2020, 02:57 PM
Jan 2020

First, whether the Supreme Court can, and if so, under what circumstances, review a Senate impeachment trial is unknown. So it overstates matters a bit to say the Court "can" review and "unfair" impeachment trial. The author relies heavily on three concurring Justices -- Justices outvoted by six other Justices. Only one of the nine Justices on the Court for the Nixon v. US case is still on the Court -- Thomas. And it is worth noting that John Paul Stevens did not join the concurring Justices.

Second, the examples of an "unfair" trial given by the concurring justices all involved convicting someone with an unfair process -- not acquitting them. It is a leap of faith to assume that the same standard of "fairness" would necessarily apply to an acquittal than to a conviction.

Third, the examples given do not resemble the procedure that McConnell is going to ram through the Senate -- a procedure that on its face is not all that difference from the procedure approved 100-0 in the Clinton impeachment. Yes, the underlying facts are different, but that would pull the Court into a more granular investigation of impeachment trial procedures that contemplated by the concurring Justices. Those Justices were concerned about a trial that had no procedures and/or an automatic determination. The process contemplated by McConnell likely will involve the presentation of written briefs by the House manages and Trump's defense team, oral argument by both, and questions from members of the Senate.

It is true that the House didn't get documents and witness testimony that it sought from a variety of sources. But it concluded it had enough information to impeach. In a typical criminal proceeding, charges are brought without the defendant having had a chance to defend himself/herself until he/she gets to trial -- grand juries are completely one sided proceedings. However, the House investigations offered opportunity to Trump and his defenders to question witnesses. Trump and his defenders also were given the opportunity to present their own witnesses/evidence. It is absolutely the case that they declined to do so, but in assessing the fairness of a trial, the focus is typically on whether the process is fair to the accused, not to the accusers.

In short, the chances of the Supreme Court reviewing the "fairness" of the Trump impeachment procedures/trial are as close to zero as you can get and it is wishful thinking to assume otherwise.

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