The First Impeachment of a President

Guest: Brenda Wineapple is the author of the book The impeachers: The Trial of Andrew Johnson and the Dream of a Just Nation.

This is the story of the period shortly after Abraham Lincoln’s assassination, when Vice-President Andrew Johnson, now “the Accidental President,”  ignored Congress, pardoned rebel leaders, promoted white supremacy, opposed civil rights, and called Reconstruction unnecessary. Congress had to stop the American president who acted like a king.

Feature image: The Senate as a Court of Impeachment for the Trial of President Andrew Johnson on Wikipedia

The post The First Impeachment of a President appeared first on KPFA.