Impeachment - Article 1, Section 2, Clause 5

"The House of Representatives...shall have the sole Power of Impeachment."


Comment: The Framers were concerned that federal officials would not monitor each other. As a result, the Framers wanted a tool that would allow Congress to discipline those who abused their constitutional duties, while at the same time preserving the separation of powers between the branches. In working their way through the issue, one delegate made a proposal that allowed for Congress to remove the President if requested by a majority of the State legislators. However, that proposal was rejected on the grounds that it would subject the President to the manipulation of the States. In the end, the Framers decided to go with what most of the States' constitutions were following.

As expected, the Framers wanted the "sole Power" of bringing charges of impeachment to be vested in the Legislature, because that branch is closest to the people. The Constitution is silent on how the House is to initiate impeachment proceedings; so, early on a Member would rise on the floor and propose impeachment, which would then be assigned to a committee. Currently, Members of the House Judiciary Committee initiate impeachment proceeding with recommendations to the whole House. If the House approves an impeachment resolution, then the Chairman of the Judiciary Committee recommends "managers," which the House also approves by resolution, who then become prosecutors in the trial in the Senate.

Although it seems reasonable to presume that House has some sort of affirmative duty to monitor officials, most experts agree that because the House is vested with the "sole Power," a decision whether to initial impeachment proceeds is not reviewable by the Courts. In any event, only a few impeachments have occurred. In fact, the House has only moved seriously to impeach 18 officials in the more than 200 years since the Constitution was ratified, including two presidents (Andrew Johnson and William Clinton, both acquitted in the Senate; Nixon resigned prior to the House voting), one cabinet member, one senator, and 13 judges.

Primary Source. The Heritage Guide to the Constitution.


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Speaker of the House - Article 1, Section 2, Clause 5

"The House of Representatives shall chuse their Speaker and other Officers...."

Comment: This provision was generally taken from the Massachusetts Constitution of 1780. It clearly establishes the House's power to choose its own leadership. The House of Representatives elects its Speaker first before the House formally adopts its rules of procedure for the legislative term. A candidate must receive a majority of the votes cast. The Speaker is the primary legislative leader of the body - as a result, the Speaker declares and defends the agenda of the majority party. The Speaker's role has largely been shaped by traditions and customs as the Constitution does not state the duties of the Speaker. Therefore, traditionally, the Speaker does not usually debate, vote, or sit on any standing committees. The Speaker has enormous power, which includes the power to appoint members and chairmen of committees, and the power to control the timing and content of bills brought before the house.

Primary Source. The Heritage Guide to the Constitution.

Executive Writs of Elections - Article 1, Section 2, Clause 4

"When vacancies happen in the Representation from any State, the Executive Authority thereof shall issue Writs of Election to fill such Vacancies." 

Comment: The Framers did not want to see "the people" go unrepresented.  As a result, this clause provides the power to fill a vacant House seat by a special election. The Constitution vests that power with the State Executive - i.e., the State's Governor. The Governor has substantial discretion as to the timing of special elections; but, as a general rule, has affirmative duty to issue writs of election to fill vacancies unless the unexpired term were exceedingly short.


Primary Source. The Heritage Guide to the Constitution.

Allocation of Representatives - Article 1, Section 2, Clause 3

“The Number of Representatives shall not exceed one for every thirty Thousand, but each State shall have at Least one Representative; and until such enumeration shall be made, the State of

                    New Hampshire shall be entitled to choose three,

                    Massachusetts eight,

                     Rhode Island and Providence Plantations one,

                     Connecticut five,

                     New York six,

                     New Jersey four,

                     Pennsylvania eight,

                     Delaware one,

                    Maryland six,

                    Virginia ten,

                     North Carolina five,

                     South Carolina five and

                    Georgia three.”

Comment:  Remembering back to Article 1, Section 2, Clause 1, the Framers wanted the people to be represented in the House of Representatives (cf. the States were represented by the Senate). To that end, the Framers spent many hours discussing the structure of representation. Here, this provision deals with the number of Representatives to be elected from each state.  Madison wanted the initial number to be 130; however, the majority of delegations decided that 65 Representatives would be a sufficient starting point. The Framers drafted this provision with some flexibility, which allowed for increased representation as the population grew; but, the provision did not allow for more than 1 Representative for every 30,000 persons. The Anti-Federalist were very concerned about the small number of Representatives. Madison answered their objection by explaining that the number of Congressmen would increase as the population increase and that there would be sufficient amount of checks and balances against corruption within the Constitution. Madison, however, argued against any “built-in” increase to the numbers of Representatives. In the end, in 1929 Congress decided to cap the number of Representatives at 435. Since then Congress has applied five different methods of apportioning Representatives among the states.  The present “Hill Method” (a complex formula), which determines when a state may gain or lose a seat, has been used since 1940. See Federalist Paper 10 and 55.

Primary Source. The Heritage Guide to the Constitution.