High Crimes and Misdemeanors
Grade
9-12
Lesson Duration
Constitutional Rights Foundation
The grounds for most impeachments is the phrase “High Crimes and Misdemeanors” in the U.S. Constitution. Students complete a reading that examines how the phrase was adopted at the Constitutional Convention and take a look at three impeachment cases involving presidents (Andrew Johnson, Richard Nixon, Bill Clinton) to understand how Congress has interpreted “high crimes and misdemeanors.”
Next, students role play members of the House Judiciary Committee in order to determine the outcome of hypothetical impeachment proceedings.
Go to: http://www.crf-usa.org/impeachment/high-crimes-and-misdemeanors.html