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Can a Former President Be Tried for Impeachment?

Can a Former President Be Tried for Impeachment?

Experts Judge J. Michael Luttig and Keith Whittington discuss this question and whether the Supreme Court or Congress decides.

We the People

January 22, 20211h 3m

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Show Notes

Judge J. Michael Luttig, formerly of the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, and Professor Keith Whittington of Princeton join host Jeffrey Rosen to consider how to interpret the constitutional text and historical precedent surrounding the question of whether the senate can hold President Trump’s impeachment trial now that he’s left office.

Judge Luttig explains why he thinks that the president cannot be tried and convicted by the senate after he has already left office, and why only the Supreme Court can answer the question of whether Congress can hold an impeachment trial for a former president. Professor Whittington details his view that a former president can be tried and convicted, and that it’s a purely political question up to the senate to ultimately decide.


Resources and transcript available at constitutioncenter.org/interactive-constitution/media-library

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