Thread by @jgeltzer

THREAD

"An impeachable offense is whatever a majority of the House of Representatives considers it to be at a given moment in history." - Ford

"I did nothing in particular, & did it very well." - Rehnquist

Perhaps impeachment's 2 most famous quotes. But what do they mean? /1

Both quotes illustrate that impeachment is entering a phase where the legal yields--in part--to the political. As the House votes on articles of impeachment & a Senate trial begins, politics loom even larger.

But there's still real legal work to be done, in at least 3 senses. /2

1st, it's important to cut thru political noise & find real law. For example, it might've seemed like the Republican impeachment scholar disagreed with the Dems' scholars on a lot; but as I explained here they actually agreed on the key legal question. /3 theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/…

2nd, it's vital to answer key threshold questions that really are about law, not politics. For example, the question of whether an impeachable offense must be a federal crime isn't a matter of politics. It's a legal question; & the legal answer is simply "no." /4

3rd, there's a lot of law happening in parallel with impeachment. For example, on January 3, our @GeorgetownICAP team & House lawyers will be in a DC courtroom arguing for McGahn's testimony & for the grand jury materials underlying the Mueller Report. Those are LEGAL issues. /5

So, even as impeachment gets more & more political, it's important to remember that there remain key legal questions implicated.

And, even more importantly, those legal questions have real legal answers--not just political ones. /END