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===Andrew Johnson (1868)===

===Andrew Johnson (1868)===

After the [[Civil War]], although the fighting had ended, the country remained deeply divided, with emotions running high. The big questions remaining were over empowerment of recently freed slaves, and what to do with those who had engaged in rebellion against the United States.  President [[Andrew Johnson]], a Democrat elected vice president in 1864 at the height of the war on a national unity ticket with Republican [[Abraham Lincoln]], was in constant conflict with the [[Radical Republicans]] who controlled Congress.  The [[media]] called Republicans "radical" because they advocated full equality and [[civil rights]] for [[blacks]], and wanted to punish Southern slaveholders and Confederates who engaged in open rebellion.   

After the [[Civil War]], although the fighting had ended, the country remained deeply divided, with emotions running high. Nearly every family had suffered greatly or lost loved ones in the violence.  However big questions remained over empowerment of recently freed slaves, and what to do with those who had engaged in rebellion against the United States.   

 

President [[Andrew Johnson]], a Democrat elected vice president in 1864 at the height of the war on a national unity ticket with Republican [[Abraham Lincoln]], was in constant conflict with the [[Radical Republicans]] who controlled Congress.  The [[media]] called Republicans "radical" because they advocated full equality and [[civil rights]] for [[blacks]], and wanted to punish Southern slaveholders and Confederates who engaged in open rebellion.   

Johnson handed out numerous pardons to former slaveholders, Confederate officers, and the rank and file.  This brought Johnson into conflict with Lincoln's [[Secretary of War]], who had been confirmed by the Senate, vowing to carry out the Republicans' civil rights efforts for Blacks in occupied military districts of [[the South]] when the war was over.

Johnson handed out numerous pardons to former slaveholders, Confederate officers, and the rank and file.  This brought Johnson into conflict with Lincoln's [[Secretary of War]], who had been confirmed by the Senate, vowing to carry out the Republicans' civil rights efforts for Blacks in occupied military districts of [[the South]] when the war was over.

When the House of Representatives impeached President Johnson by an overwhelming vote of 126 to 47, his ouster appeared to be a ''fait accompli''. President Johnson had violated the Tenure in Office Act by dismissing the Secretary of War. The key issue was if a President had the power to fire a cabinet secretary confirmed by the Senate without the Senate's consent. Johnson was also intemperate in his name-calling of key senators. In addressing the jury of 54 senators, the prosecutor referred to President Johnson as an "accidental Chief" and "the elect of an assassin." Witnesses testified for both the prosecution and the defense.

When the House of Representatives impeached President Johnson by an overwhelming vote of 126 to 47, his ouster appeared to be a ''fait accompli''. President Johnson had violated the Tenure in Office Act by dismissing the Secretary of War. The key issue was if a President had the power to fire a cabinet secretary confirmed by the Senate without the Senate's consent. Johnson was also intemperate in his name-calling of key senators. In addressing the jury of 54 senators, the prosecutor referred to President Johnson as an "accidental Chief" and "the elect of an assassin." Witnesses testified for both the prosecution and the defense.

The prosecutors – called “managers” in impeachment trials – were confident of victory. Manager Thaddeus Stevens described President Johnson as the "wretched man, standing at bay, surrounded by a cordon of living men, each with the axe of an executioner uplifted for his just punishment." Manager John Bingham brought the public galleries to their feet with his oratory: "May God forbid that the future historian shall record of this day's proceedings, that by reason of the failure of the legislative power of the people to triumph over the usurpations of an apostate President, the fabric of American empire fell and perished from the earth."

The prosecutors – called “managers” in impeachment trials – were confident of victory. Manager Thaddeus Stevens described President Johnson as the "wretched man, standing at bay, surrounded by a cordon of living men, each with the axe of an executioner uplifted for his just punishment." Manager John Bingham brought the public galleries to their feet with his oratory: "May God forbid that the future historian shall record of this day's proceedings, that by reason of the failure of the legislative power of the people to triumph over the usurpations of an apostate President, the fabric of American empire fell and perished from the earth....I ask you to consider that we stand this day pleading for the violated majesty of the law, by the graves of half a million of martyred hero-patriots who made death beautiful by the sacrifice of themselves for their country, the Constitution and the laws, and who, by their sublime example, have taught us all to obey the law; that none are above the law;... and that position, however high, [[patronage]], however powerful, cannot be permitted to shelter crime to the peril of the [[republic]]."

2/3rd vote was necessary for conviction, and it all turned on Republican Senator [[Edmund Ross]] of Kansas. Like real jurors, he spoke to no one during the proceedings and no one knew which way he was leaning. But he voted "not guilty," and President Johnson was acquitted by one vote. The Radical Republicans were defeated, the [[Ku Klux Klan]] and [[Jim Crow]] arose, and Republicans shied away from civil rights issues for the next 100 years in the face of Klan terror and media opposition.  Ross was characterized as a hero in [[John F. Kennedy]]'s book ''Profiles in Courage'', for resisting Republican civil rights reform efforts for Blacks in the South, and working with Democrats.  Andrew Johnson did not run for re-election and died a drunk.

2/3rd vote was necessary for conviction, and it all turned on Republican Senator [[Edmund Ross]] of Kansas. Like real jurors, he spoke to no one during the proceedings and no one knew which way he was leaning. But he voted "not guilty," and President Johnson was acquitted by one vote. The Radical Republicans were defeated, the [[Ku Klux Klan]] and [[Jim Crow]] arose, and Republicans shied away from civil rights issues for the next 100 years in the face of Klan terror and media opposition.  Ross was characterized as a hero in [[John F. Kennedy]]'s book ''Profiles in Courage'', for resisting Republican civil rights reform efforts for Blacks in the South, and working with Democrats.  Andrew Johnson did not run for re-election and died a drunk.