Opinion On Impeachment Hearings Essay, Research Paper

mpeachment is a serious offense. It is not a slap on the hand, nor is it a humble form of discipline. Impeachment is the most severe form of punishment a president can receive. To date, only two presidents have been impeached. Andrew Johnson (he was later aquitted by the Senate) and William Jefferson Clinton. Yes, Mr. Clinton did have inappropriate sexual relations with Ms. Monica Lewinsky. Yes, Mr. Clinton lied about these relations under oath to a grand jury. However, that does not constitute President Clinton from being discharged from office. William Jefferson Clinton did not commit such a critical misdeed that warrants him to be removed of his duties. President Clinton s actions were not the main motives of his impeachment. The underlying objective of the Republican party was simply to overturn the two elections that put a democrat in office for two consecutive terms. In order to do this, Mr. Kenneth Starr was hired by the Republican party as independent counsel. Mr. Starr s job, at the taxpayers expense, was to dig into the private life of Mr. Clinton. Mr. Starr was allegedly searching for any evidence of wrong-doing involving the president with the Whitewater affair. When that search failed to bring any incriminating evidence forth, Mr. Starr, began to rummage through the presidents personal relationships. While searching for dirt on the president, Mr. Starr was approached by a woman named Ms. Linda Tripp. Ms. Tripp brought the independent counsel information that she had been gathering surreptitiously for quite some time. The illegally obtained information regarded President Clinton and Ms. Monica Lewinsky. Mr. Starr then proceeded to look into the Clinton- Lewinsky affair out of malice. The outcome of Mr. Starr s report was so sensationalized with sex, it put most of the tabloids to shame. Mr. Starr s report, however, did not leave the majority of the citizens of the United States of America convinced that the president had ultimately committed a great crime. The president showed that he too, was human and capable of mistakes. This was a mistake that the Republicans wanted everyone in the world to know about. Not murder or robbery, but an extramarital affair. A situation that is usually dealt with in the home, not in the great

court system of the United States. It was this indiscretion that led to the taxpayers spending over 40 million dollars. If anybody should be prosecuted. it should be the whole Republican party. Their witch hunt on the president is complete and the only thing they could come up with is that Mr. Clinton had an inappropriate sexual relationship. President Bill Clinton did lie under oath to a grand jury. However, the lies that the President told had nothing to do with the United States of America or how it was being governed. Instead the lies told by Mr. Clinton, were to protect his family from the humiliation that they now all endure. If the President had told the truth about his sexual relations with Ms. Lewinsky, would he still be in the same position? Undoubtedly so. While Mr. Clinton is the president of the United States, he is still a democratic politition. To the Republicans, that is reason enough to destroy a family and the integrity of a whole nation. In no way did Mr. Clinton s lies about Monica Lewinsky need to be broadcasted to the nation. It was a private affair that was really none of our concern. If we impeached every polititian that told a lie, there would be a plethora more than two presidents impeached. A lie, that did not affect the nation, should not constitute a reason to impeach the President. Another reason the President should not be taken out of office, is the simple fact that he is a good president. Obviously the people who brought Mr. Clinton back for a second term thought so. Never in the history of the United States has the economy been this well off. People are spending freely and without worry. Unemployment is at an all time low. Many people regard this as the work of an ingenious president. People in this country also feel that Mr. Clinton is a person that they can relate to. He enjoys junkfood and jazz music. He has to jog to stay fit. These are the things that an average person notices and automatically connects with. While the aforementioned don t particularly fit everyone s definition of a good president, no one can deny the President s popularity. Mr. Clinton did not commit crimes worth impeaching him for. The Senate can not take the president out of office for such crimes as an affair and a lie about the affair. That would be absolutely ridiculous. If anybody should be taken out of office, it should be the Republicans that didn t mind spending enormous funds to prove that the president had an affair.