How Does The Impeachment Process Work?
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- An investigation to remove President Donald Trump from the Oval Office is officially underway in Washington D.C. Tuesday night.
This is only the fourth time in the history of the United States that a president has faced impeachment proceedings.
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Here is how the process works. The U.S. Constitution does allow Congress to remove presidents if it finds they committed treason, bribery, or other high crimes or misdemeanors.
It's a lengthy, complicated process where politicians make the judgement calls -- and Tuesday was a first step.
"This shifts us in some ways from let us say just a general oversight that the House has been doing right now to specifically asking that question: Should the president be impeached?" said Hamline University professor David Schultz.
Generally, if that House committee recommends articles of impeachment, the vote goes before the entire House -- which needs a majority to impeach.
If that passes, this all moves to the Senate -- where two-thirds of Senators would have to find the president guilty.
"Think of it in terms of a [criminal trial] parallel here. There's somebody who's indicted, that's what the House is doing, and then the Senate holds the trial to determine if the evidence holds up to convict," Schultz said.
Schultz says this could take months. If it moves forward, it is possible that the process will bump up against the 2020 election.