I am the cofounder and president of free speech for people. Free speech for people is a national nonprofit, Nonpartisan Organization launched on the day of the Supreme Courts Citizens United decision more than seven years ago, and dedicated to defending our constitution and reclaiming our democracy. We have been comeeting with a Group Calling for an impeachment investigation of the president. More than 1. 3 million americans have joined this campaign, and it is backed by a legal advisory prominent constitutional scholars across the country, including two law professors on this panel today. Free speech for people is proud today to be joined by the need to Impeach Campaign for this press briefing to discuss the basis for a impeachment investigation of president donald j. Trump. Today we are releasing a white paper and our panel will discuss the grounds outlined in that document. Inill introduce our speakers the order they will be speaking. Following the remarks, we will take questions and we will close with a public signing of feed of documents the white paper and the cover letter for the members of congress who will be paper today. S our first speaker is katharine ross, a law professor at George WashingtonUniversity Law school. Catherine ross. Thebook in 2015 was named best book on the First Amendment and one the critics choice book award. An elected fellow of the american bar foundation, professor ross is a former chair Committee SteeringCommittee Member from the association of america outlaw school. Prior to entering legal academia, professor ross was a litigator, where she won major litigation on behalf of the new york homeless population. She holds a phd in American History from Yale University. Professor ross will discuss the history and function of impeachment in the constitution and the meaning of high crimes and misdemeanors. Following professor ross, we rein, thefrom ron director of free speech for people. Fein previously served in Environmental Protection agencys office where he received the National Notable Achievement award and several other words. Mr. Fein is a graduate of stanford law school. The legalscuss grounds for impeachment investigation directing Law Enforcement to pursue political targets, advocating defiance of violence,d illegal abusing the pardon power, undermining freedom of the press, and recklessly threatening nuclear war. Jenniferwill hear from taub. Securityesearched legislation and crime and she serves on the subcommittee concerning banking and financial reform and related matters. Howfirst book made bankers made Home Mortgage is a thrilling business was published by Yale University press. She was also the coauthor of corporate and white collar crime. It is in its sixth edition, published in 2017. Has writtenub extensively on the financial crisis. Prior to joining academia, she counsel ofociate fidelity investments. She will discuss the president s businesses, the president s ongoing violation of the foreign and domestic emoluments clauses of the constitution. We will then hear from ben clements, the chair of the board of free speech for people. He is a former federal prosecutor and former chief Legal Counsel of Massachusetts Governor deval patrick. He is a Founding Member of his persons, representing and entities in whitecollar does proceedings, complex this litigation and appeals, and providing advice in connection with political campaigns, government ethics, and related areas. His clients have included Business Executives and professionals, senior government officials, fortune 500 companies, small businesses, nonprofit institutions, and federal governments. He previously served as the chair of the Massachusetts Governor task force on public integrity, a Bipartisan Committee that led to landmark legislation. Mr. Clements is a graduate of cornell law school. Discuss the will following legal grounds for an impeachment investigation obstruction of justice, conspiracy with a Foreign Government to commit crimes against the United States, including violation of the federal Campaign Finance laws. Mr. Clements will also address why impeachment hearings should begin now. Our final speaker will be tom s teyer. A progressive activist and environmentalist who believes we have a moral responsibility to ensure all americans have equal access to economic opportunity, education, and a healthy environment. He is a present president and nextgennext gen america which asked to predict the fundamental rights of every american. Earlier this year, he started the needed to Impeach Campaign, which has garnered more than 3 million signatures on a petition calling for comfortable impeachment. The effort is backed by a 20 million ad buy, which includes two Television Advertisements and times squares billboards that will run through new years eve, directing people to sign the petition at needtoim peach. Com. He will discuss the campaign and why American People are calling for impeachment proceedings to begin now. Our first speaker will be professor ross. Professor ross thank you, john. Thank you for coming today. Impeachment is an extraordinary remedy which should always be a course of last resort. As events quickly unfold it is imperative the citizens of this country understand the impeachment process and the significant role the founders expected it to perform within our constitutional democracy. I will provide an overview of impeachment, its role, and the grounds that historically have been understood to justify it. First, what is impeachment and how does it work . Is oftenimpeachment misunderstood and misused. Impeachment occurs when the house of representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment, a resolution that spells out allegations of wrongdoing by a public official. Before that, the house would have directed one of its committees to investigate the allegations. If the committee after investigation recommends the full house consider articles of impeachment, only a simple majority is needed to adopt the articles, at which point, the official has been impeached. After the house and peaches, it doesnt in peaches, it designates members to present the case to the full senate, which hits in trial over the official. When a president has been impeached, the chief justice of the Supreme Court presides over the trial, and at the conclusion of the trial, the senators vote on whether to convict. The senate requires a two thirds vote to convict in impeachment proceedings and if the senate convicts, removal from office is automatic and immediate. The second question that comes up is what purpose is impeachment designed to serve . The constitution largely models impeachment on traditions in the british parliament, as well as several state constitutions, both of which, as founding father James Madison explained, a bridleimpeachment as the legislature can use to rein in an executive overreaches. At thethe debates constitutional convention, madison argued it was indispensable that some provision be made defending the community against the incapacity, negligence, or perfidy of the chief magistrate language, the present. Joseph story and his history of the constitution and elaborated. In england, he said, the constitutional maxim is the king can do no wrong. In sharp contrast, the impeachment provision of our constitution ask as a check up on arbitrary power and compels the chief magistrate, as well as the humblest citizen, to bend to the majesty of the laws. In other words, we are a nation ruled by law. An importantffered reassurance to those who drafted and adopted the constitution, a reassurance that the american cause toho had just overthrow the british king, would not find themselves at the hands of another desperate, to use the terms of the declaration of independence. Explained to provisions of the constitution in particular protect against despotism. First, the president s term is limited to a certain number of years, and second, the president is impeachable at any time during his term of office. Some scholars go so far as to say the constitution would never have been adopted if it had not included provisions for impeachment. Importantly, impeachment is not intended to punish the offending official, but rather to protect the body politic by removing a lawless official in order to prevent further harm to the country. Finally, what are the grounds may behich a president impeached . The constitution states the grounds for impeachment are highon, bribery, or other crimes and misdemeanors. Treason and bribery have clear meanings. But what are high crimes and misdemeanors . Terms commonly misunderstood. The phrase is a term of art the framers understood from english history. High crimes referred to offenses committed against the state by five five Public Officials. They may mean threatening constitutional order, corruption that violates the public trust. Impeachment and conviction by the senate do not need to be based on criminal acts. Congress is self explained in high crimes and misdemeanors are serious violations of the public trust, not necessarily in die double offenses indictable under criminal law. Federalist 65, written by madison again, explains that applies to the abuse or violation of some public trust. Some violations may be, madison said, political as they relate damage done to the society itself. It is generally agreed he did not mean political in the sense that word is used today. Impeachment is not based on just anything that congress decides, as gerald ford so famously and wrongly suggested. 19th century commentator and summarizedrt justice Impeachable Offenses as those committed by public men in violation of their public trust and duties and he elaborated impeachment reaches beyond crimes to offenses in the discharge of duties of Political Office that grow out of personal misconduct or gross neglect or usurpation or habitual disregard of the public interest. Them, he said, through very broad and comprehensive principles of Public Policy and duty. That brings us to more contemporary readings. In 2015, the Nonpartisan Congressional Research Service concluded congress has historically used it impeachment conduct that is incompatible with the office. Falls into three groups abuse of power, behavior incompatible with the function and purpose of the office, and misusing the office for personal gain. Finally, the report explained grounds for impeachment included abuse of the particular powers of a government office, conduct the Congressional Research service emphasized is unlikely to be barred by any criminal statute. Only impeachment proceedings have the power to constrain such bad behavior by Public Officials who have not violated criminal their power. Busing every member of Congress Today swore an oath to support and defend the constitution. We the people should hold our representatives to that oath. Impeachment was designed as a safety valve for reining in the violations of the public trust. Indeed, it is the failsafe at the heart of our public toucture, expressly designed be used when a president threatens constitutional norms, the institutions on which the mock receipt rests, or the rule of a. Thank you. The rule of law. Thank you. N hank you, professor thank you, professor ross. Ronnext speaker will be fein. Fein thank you. As professor ross noted, not all in feasible offenses are ordinary crimes. These five categories are advocating illegal violence in , undermininghe law the protection of the law, abusing pardon power, three, directing Law Enforcement to pursue political targets, four, undermining freedom of the press, and fifth, recklessly threatening nuclear war. To set this in context, as late Supreme Court justice antonin aalia a once noted, we have government of laws, not of men. But President Trump takes a cruder view. He urged his supporters ofnock the crap out protesters and he would pay their legal fees. This regard has continued. Call miners said that it was hard for them to in july, he told police to be the rest ofh people, which Police Chiefs around the country understood as encouraging excessive force. In august he issued a tweet that appeared to suggest that members of the military should commit war crimes by executing muslim prisoners of war, two days after he insisted there were very fine people among the White Supremacists in charlottesville, west virginia. White supremacists openly appreciated that aiding comfort. But he can do more than pay for legal fees when supporters commit acts of violence. When his political ally, former sheriff Joseph Arpaio of arizona, was convicted of contempt of court for willfully ignoring a court order to stop detaining latino drivers illegally, trump argued he was just doing his job and pardoned him. That signaled that unscrupulous individuals could all his advice, ignore constitutional rights, and when they lose in court they could violate a federal court order to stop doing that. His pardon undercut the constitutional guarantee of due process of law. The framers of our constitution worried about these problems. In the federalist papers, Alexander Hamilton warned, those men who overturned and liberties of republics, the latest number have begun their career as mincing demagogues and tyrants. In the Virginia Convention that met to decide whether to ratify the constitution, george mason warned the president might pardon crimes which were advised by himself. And so destroy the republic. James madison had a reply for george mason. He replied that if a president used the pardon to shelter a person with whom he was connected in any suspicious matter, congress could impeach this ad thus called great security. Thats not all. In 1925, the chief justice of the Supreme Court, former president William Howard taft up find if a president used his pardon power, that would suggest a resort to impeachment. President trumps lack of respect for legal norms also extends to protecting legal targets. 2017, sincerse of the inauguration, mr. Trump has repeatedly pressured the department of justice and federal federal bureau of investigation to investigate and adversarieslitical including former campaign opponent Hillary Clinton and the democratic party. Jackson, thert attorney general, who would later serve as a Supreme Court justice and the chief prosecutor at nuremberg, want the greatest prosecuting power was picking the man or the woman and putting investigators to work winning some offense on her. I chief executive who uses lawenforcement to persecute political enemies is characteristic of an authoritarian regime, not a constitutional republic. That is what republican and democratic president s have respected Law Enforcement, with the exception of richard nixon. The second article of impeachment against president nixon specifically cited his use of federal investigative agencies against political opponents. Another danger is abuse of power is the president s effort to undermine the freedom of the press, enshrined in the First Amendment. Has said thaturt only a free and unrestrained check on thea government. Many president s have contentious relationships with reporters and have sparred with the media, but previous president s have understood the presss essential role in our democracy. In 2007, then president george bush noted the United States values freedom of the press as one of the most fundamental Political Rights and necessary components in a free society and in undemocratic societies were government suppress, manipulate information president bush then went on to journalistsssing abroad. In contrast, President Trump has spent his entire presidency attacking the independent press as fake news and even an enemy out of the American People. He has adjusted revoking the licenses of networks for critical coverage. Furthermore, his rhetoric has encouraged Foreign Governments to attack the very u. S. Media criticizes,t endangering not only press freedoms, but the lives and safety of american journalists. As noted in the origins of to theterry knows hi origins of totalitarianism, the ideal subject is one where the distinction of true and false no longer exists. A brief note about the president s threats against north korea, on twitter and elsewhere, threatening an attack. The situation in north korea is obviously very complicated and difficult with no easy answers. The president is commander in chief of the armed forces. He sets the nations Foreign Policy and he is certa