February 6, 2020
Impeachment Resources from the ACS Network
Latest
Trump Was Not Convicted. But He Was Exposed. By Neal K. Katyal and Joshua A. Geltzer, New York Times.
Senate Vote Raises Deep Constitutional Concerns for the Future. Statement by ACS Interim President Zinelle October
Scholars Letter to Senate Re: Constitutional Arguments of President’s Counsel. More than 300 constitutional scholars signed this letter clarifying that impeachment does not require proof of crime, that abuse of power is an impeachable offense, and that a president may not abuse the powers of his office to secure reelection, whatever he may believe about how beneficial his continuance in power is to the country.
Not Allowing Witnesses, Further Evidence Undercuts Constitutional Ideals, Statement of ACS Interim President Zinelle October on the January 31 Senate vote denying witnesses in the impeachment trial.
Daily News Clips Compilation: February 6, 2020
Would Roberts Need to Recuse in Any Trump Suit Challenging Bolton? Quoting Frank Bowman and Michael Gerhardt. Bowman is a member of the ACS Missouri Lawyer Chapter Board of Directors, a professor of law at the University of Missouri and visiting professor at Georgetown Law. Gerhardt is the Burton Craige Distinguished Professor of Jurisprudence at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Law and serves as the faculty advisor ACS student chapter there.
Trump’s Defense Against Subpoenas Makes No Legal Sense, by Frank Bowman, The Atlantic. Bowman is a member of the ACS Missouri Lawyer Chapter Board of Directors, a professor of law at the University of Missouri and visiting professor at Georgetown Law.
Why Trump’s Lawyers Should Talk Like Lawyers, by Kate Shaw, The New York Times. Shaw is ACS Co-Faculty Advisor at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law.
John Roberts Can Call Witnesses to Trump’s Trial. Will He?, by Neal K. Katyal, Joshua A. Geltzer, and Former GOP Rep. Mickey Edwards.
‘Constitutional Nonsense’: Trump’s Impeachment Defense Defies Legal Consensus, quoting Frank Bowman, The New York Times. Bowman is a member of the ACS Missouri Lawyer Chapter Board of Directors, a professor of law at the University of Missouri and visiting professor at Georgetown Law. A constitutional scholar, Bowman is author of High Crimes and Misdemeanors: A History of Impeachment for the Age of Trump.
How Executive Privilege Would Throw a Wrench Into Senate Impeachment Proceedings, by Frank Bowman, New York Times.
The Role of the Chief Justice in an Impeachment Trial, by Frank Bowman, SCOTUSblog. Bowman is a member of the ACS Missouri Lawyer Chapter Board of Directors, a professor of law at the University of Missouri and visiting professor at Georgetown Law. A constitutional scholar, Bowman is author of High Crimes and Misdemeanors: A History of Impeachment for the Age of Trump.
U.S. Senate Must Place Principles Above Politics in Impeachment Process, statement by ACS Interim President Zinelle October.
Donald Trump has violated his oath. Mitch McConnell is about to violate 2, by Kent Greenfield. Greenfield is a law professor at Boston College and ACS Faculty Advisor.
Sometimes our Constitution calls on politicians to rise above politics. Impeachment is one of those times. by Matthew Monahan. Monahan is the President of the ACS Michigan Lawyer Chapter.
Events
ACS Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law, 1/30/20, High Crime Constitutionalism
Louisiana State, 3/5/2020, Where's the Nuance Series: Impeachment
Impeachment Guide for Community Discussions
Interested in organizing a discussion in your community about impeachment?
The ACS Impeachment Discussion Guide reviews House and Senate impeachment procedures, the constitutional text addressing impeachment, and the role of the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. The Guide includes questions to aid in discussing these topics. For example: What do you think of using House managers to prosecute impeachments? Should outside counsel be hired instead?
- Download the ACS Impeachment Discussion Guide.
- Sign up here if you plan to host a community discussion.
- Suggested venues for community impeachment discussions include community colleges, city town halls, public libraries, independent bookstores, local public schools and universities, undergraduate campuses, and churches.
- Questions? Email us at LCEmails@acslaw.org.
From the ACS Impeachment Blog Symposium:
Professor Ciara Torres-Spelliscy on Trump's campaign finance violations.
Austin Evers of American Oversight on obstruction of congressional investigations.
Gabe Lezra on emoluments clause violations.
From the ACS Network:
We Already Know Enough to Conclude that President Trump Should Be Impeached and Removed from Office, by Neil Siegel, Balkinization. Siegel is the David W. Ichel Professor of Law and Professor of Political Science, Duke Law School, and Member of the ACS Board of Directors.
The Zelensky Memo Is All the Proof Needed to Impeach Trump, by Noah Bookbinder, New York Times Opinion. Bookbinder is the executive director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.
If Whistleblower Is Right, Trump May Have Committed Extortion and Bribery, by Barbara McQuade, The Daily Beast. McQuade is a professor from practice at the University of Michigan Law School, and formerly the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan.
Trump's Ukraine Call Mentioning Biden Is the Strongest Reason Yet for Impeachment, by Leah Litman, NBC News Opinion. Litman is an assistant professor of law at the University of Michigan Law School and serves on the ACS Board of Academic Advisors.
Letter to Congress from Legal Scholars, more than 500 legal scholars signed a letter stating that the president engaged in impeachable conduct.
High Crimes and Misdemeanors, by Dan Cotter, Harvard Law and Policy Review. Cotter is a lawyer practicing in Chicago. He currently is Co-Chair of the ACS Chicago Lawyer Chapter.
Impeachment Process
ACS Resources:
LISTEN: ACS held a briefing call on October 4 about the legal and procedural standards for impeachment. Speakers: Mieke Eoyang, Vice President for the National Security Program, Third Way; Michael Gerhardt, Burton Craige Distinguished Professor of Jurisprudence, UNC School of Law; and Kara Stein, ACS Vice President of Policy & Program, Moderator.
From the ACS Impeachment Blog Symposium:
What to Expect When You're Expecting Impeachment, by Neil Kinkopf on the impeachment process. Kinkopf is a professor at the Georgia State University College of Law and an ACS faculty advisor.
From the ACS Network:
Impeachment Does Not 'Overturn' an Election, by Stephen Vladeck, The New York Times. Vladeck is a professor at the University of Texas School of Law and on the Board of Academic Advisors for ACS.
Trump’s Impeachment Strategy: Trick Americans Into Blaming Congress, by Barbara McQuade, New York Magazine. McQuade is a professor from practice at the University of Michigan Law School, and formerly the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan.
Yes, Virginia, There Is No Senate Clause, by Daniel Cotter, Harvard Law and Policy Review. Cotter is a Partner at Latimer LeVay Fyock LLC, and an Adjunct Professor at The John Marshall Law School.
Interview with Frank Bowman III, The American Prospect. Bowman is professor of law at the University of Missouri and visiting professor at Georgetown Law. A constitutional scholar, Bowman is author of High Crimes and Misdemeanors: A History of Impeachment for the Age of Trump.
Why the Whistle-Blowing Process Is Breaking Down, by Stephen I. Vladeck, The New York Times. Vladeck is a professor at the University of Texas School of Law and serves on the ACS Board of Academic Advisors.
White House Letter Distorts Both Law and History on Impeachment, Frank O. Bowman, III, Just Security. Bowman is professor of law at the University of Missouri and visiting professor at Georgetown Law. A constitutional scholar, Bowman is author of High Crimes and Misdemeanors: A History of Impeachment for the Age of Trump.
Privilege Issues
From the ACS Impeachment Blog Symposium:
Heidi Kitrosser on the president’s abuse of executive secret-keeping powers.
Barbara McQuade on why AG Barr should recuse himself from future proceedings.
David Driesen on how executive privilege might not apply in this scandal.
From the ACS Network:
The House Can Play Hardball, Too. It Can Arrest Giuliani, by Josh Chafetz, The New York Times. Chafetz is a Visiting Professor of Law at Georgetown Law Center, and a Professor of Law at Cornell University.
Trump’s Impeachment Defense Boils Down to This: Treat Me Like a King, by Michael Gerhardt, The Washington Post. Gerhardt is the Burton Craige Distinguished Professor of Jurisprudence at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Law and serves as the faculty advisor to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Law ACS student chapter.
Senate Trial
The Unbearable Incoherence of Senate Obstructionism, by ACS Board of Directors’ Peter Shane, Jacob E. Davis and Jacob E. Davis II Chair in Law, The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law.
Imagining a Senate Trial: Reading the Senate Rules of Impeachment Litigation, by Hilary Hurd and Benjamin Wittes, Lawfare.
The House Should Pause Impeachment, by Philip Bobbitt, Just Security.
Impeachment Hearings
This isn't a partisan hit job; Trump deserves to be impeached, by Nancy Gertner, The Boston Globe. Gertner is a former federal judge and member of the ACS Board of Academic Advisors.
WATCH: Judge says ‘drug dealers’ are convicted on less evidence than what’s facing Trump, featuring Nancy Gertner, MSNBC. Gertner is a former federal judge and member of the ACS Board of Academic Advisors.
Opening Statement of Professor Pamela S. Karlan, Kenneth and Harle Montgomery Professor of Public Interest Law, Stanford Law, delivered on December 4, 2019, in front of the House Judiciary Committee. Karlan is on the ACS Board of Directors. Watch video of testimony.
Opening Statement of Professor Michael Gerhardt, Burton Craige Distinguished Professor of Jurisprudence, UNC School of Law, delivered on December 4, 2019, in front of the House Judiciary Committee. Gerhardt is an ACS co-faculty advisor. Watch video of testimony.
Democrats, Don't Overreach on Impeachment, by Caroline Fredrickson, New York Times Opinion. Fredrickson is the former president of ACS.
There’s a Simple Term for What Trump Did and Democrats Should Stick With It, by Renato Mariotti, former federal prosecutor and ACS member.
Gordon Sondland's impeachment testimony on Trump and Ukraine adds up to bribery, by Barbara McQuade, former U.S. attorney, Michigan law professor, and ACS Faculty Advisor.
Gordon Sondland Leaves Us With No Other Option, by Noah Bookbinder, New York Times Opinion. Bookbinder is the executive director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.
The Evidence of Wrongdoing by Trump Is Overwhelming, by Noah Bookbinder, New York Times Opinion. Bookbinder is the executive director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.
Will the Trump Impeachment Hearings Become a Circus? by Caroline Fredrickson, New York Times Opinion. Fredrickson is President Emerita of ACS, and the author of The Democracy Fix.
Highlights of Taylor-Kent Hearing and Connections to Other Witnesses, by Kate Brannen, Tess Bridgemen, and Ryan Goodman, featuring an interview with Barbara McQuade. McQuade is a professor from practice at the University of Michigan Law School, and formerly the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan.
What Trump Is Hiding From the Impeachment Hearings, by Neal K. Katyal, New York Times Opinion. Katyal is a former acting solicitor general and a law professor.
An Open Letter from Over 300 Legal Scholars on Trump Impeachment Inquiry, by Erwin Chemerinsky, Medium. Chemerinsky is the 13th Dean of UC Berkeley, School of Law and the Jesse H. Choper Distinguished Professor of Law.
Scholars Letter to Senate Re: Constitutional Arguments of President’s Counsel. More than 300 constitutional scholars signed this letter clarifying that impeachment does not require proof of crime, that abuse of power is an impeachable offense, and that a president may not abuse the powers of his office to secure reelection, whatever he may believe about how beneficial his continuance in power is to the country.