Joshua Matz on When to Impeach, and Why

With the Senate impeachment trial of President Trump approaching, we’re sharing a past program featuring Joshua Matz – co-author (with Laurence Tribe) of To End a Presidency: The Power of Impeachment, counsel for the House Judiciary Committee, and an adjunct professor at Georgetown Law Center. Matz explains his belief that the creation of the impeachment power was a “gamble” taken by the Framers who hoped to impeach rogue presidents, and impeachment is not a “white knight” that can save our democracy. He shares insights from his book including scenarios in which he thinks impeachment must be used, as well as times when impeachment can harm the country more than help it, and gives informative historic examples of both situations. He sat down with NCC President Jeffrey Rosen just after the release of his book in 2018. 

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