Changes

===Bill Clinton (1998)===

===Bill Clinton (1998)===

[[File:Harvey-weinstein-Hillary-clinton-dinner-with-after-election-loss (2).jpg|right|200px|thumb|First Lady [[Hillary Clinton]] dining with [[Harvey Weinstein]].  Hillary served on the staff of the 1974 Watergate impeachment committee.  Weinstein donated to the Clinton Legal Defense Fund in 1998.<ref>https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/special/clinton/stories/starr082298.htm</ref>  In 2018 Weinstein was tried on rape and [[sexual assault]] charges involving more than 80 victims dating back twenty years.<ref>https://www.businessinsider.com/list-of-women-who-have-accused-harvey-weinstein-of-sexual-harassment-or-assault-2017-10</ref>]]

[[File:Harvey-weinstein-Hillary-clinton-dinner-with-after-election-loss (2).jpg|right|200px|thumb|First Lady [[Hillary Clinton]] dining with [[Harvey Weinstein]].  Hillary served on the staff of the 1974 Watergate impeachment committee.  Weinstein donated to the Clinton Legal Defense Fund in 1998.<ref>https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/special/clinton/stories/starr082298.htm</ref>  In 2018 Weinstein was tried on rape and [[sexual assault]] charges involving more than 80 victims dating back twenty years.<ref>https://www.businessinsider.com/list-of-women-who-have-accused-harvey-weinstein-of-sexual-harassment-or-assault-2017-10</ref>]]

President [[Bill Clinton]] was impeached by the House of Representatives on December 19, 1998, on charges of [[perjury]] and [[obstruction of justice]] relating to testimony he had given in a [[civil lawsuit]] a former Arkansas government employee had brought for [[sexual harassment]]. Perjury before the federal judiciary is a criminal offense. He was acquitted by the Senate on February 12, 1999, on a party-line vote.

President [[Bill Clinton]] was impeached by the House of Representatives on December 19, 1998, on charges of [[perjury]] and [[obstruction of justice]] relating to testimony he had given in a [[civil lawsuit]] a former Arkansas government employee had brought for [[sexual harassment]]. Perjury before the federal judiciary is a criminal offense. He was acquitted by the Senate on February 12, 1999.

President Clinton was doing well in the polls and ready to pick his successor for the White House by late 1998. His leadership enabled the Democratic Party to do surprisingly well in the mid-term elections, and President Clinton was seeking to leave a lasting legacy.

President Clinton was doing well in the polls and ready to pick his successor for the White House by late 1998. His leadership enabled the Democratic Party to do surprisingly well in the mid-term elections, and President Clinton was seeking to leave a lasting legacy.

The House of Representatives impeached him for making false statements under oath, which is perjury, and trial was scheduled for the Senate in 1999. [[First Lady Hillary Clinton]] accused her opponents of being part of a "vast right-wing [[conspiracy]]" against her husband. House impeachment managers introduced witness depositions, including credible evidence from a Jane Doe #5 ([[Hillary_Rodham_Clinton#Rape_allegations|Juanita Brodderick]]) that Bill Clinton had [[rape]]d her.  Democratic Senators all lined up behind President Clinton, promising to vote for acquittal.

The House of Representatives impeached him for making false statements under oath, which is perjury, and the trial was scheduled for the Senate in 1999. [[First Lady Hillary Clinton]] accused her opponents of being part of a "vast right-wing [[conspiracy]]" against her husband. House impeachment managers introduced witness depositions, including credible evidence from a Jane Doe #5 ([[Hillary_Rodham_Clinton#Rape_allegations|Juanita Brodderick]]) that Bill Clinton had [[rape]]d her.  Democratic Senators all lined up behind President Clinton, promising to vote for acquittal.

Republicans enjoyed a majority in the Senate but lacked votes anywhere close to the requisite 2/3rd majority to convict. President Clinton was a lame-duck at that point anyway, and the real battle was over his ability to influence politics beyond his term.

Republicans enjoyed a majority in the Senate but lacked votes anywhere close to the requisite 2/3rd majority to convict. President Clinton was a lame-duck at that point anyway, and the real battle was over his ability to influence politics beyond his term.

The managers of the impeachment presented their case, but the Senate prevented them from calling key witnesses such as Clinton's closest aides. The procedural rules hamstrung the trial and served to protect the president. Without the presentation of the full case, President Clinton easily survived the final vote.  Democrats established a precedent in the impeachment process that rape allegations and perjury before a federal judge do not rise to the level of an impeachable offense as a high crime and misdemeanor.

The managers of the impeachment presented their case, but the Senate prevented them from calling key witnesses such as Clinton's closest aides. The procedural rules hamstrung the trial and served to protect the president. Without the presentation of the full case, President Clinton easily survived the final vote.  Democrats established a precedent in the impeachment process that rape allegations and perjury before a federal judge do not rise to the level of an impeachable offense as a high crime and misdemeanor.

But the victory was Pyrrhic. The Democratic presidential nominee in 2000, [[Al Gore]], felt he had to distance himself from Clinton and that probably made the difference on Election Day. Since then, Clinton has had little success in campaigning for candidates, failing with Governor Gray Davis in California in the recall. Hillary Clinton, pollsters choice to run in 2004, apparently felt it was too soon to make an attempt. The political ramifications of the impeachment trial continue.

But the victory was Pyrrhic. The Democratic presidential nominee in 2000, [[Al Gore]], felt he had to distance himself from Clinton and that probably made the difference on Election Day. Since then, Clinton has had little success in campaigning for candidates, failing with Governor Gray Davis in California in the recall. Hillary Clinton, pollsters' choice to run in 2004, apparently felt it was too soon to make an attempt. The political ramifications of the impeachment trial continue.

===Donald Trump (2019)===

===Donald Trump (2019)===