The Impeachment of Bill Clinton

The Impeachment Trial of Bill Clinton

Never in the history of US Judicial history had a case generated so much controversy and media debate as the attempt to impeach President Bill Clinton during his second term in office . The case had all the ingredients of a regular potboiler , a beautiful intern , Presidential indiscretion and possible financial impropriety but more importantly the case tested the very mettle of American Jurisprudence . This essay examines the trial for the impeachment of Bill Clinton in its entirety to arrive at the political ramifications , mistakes of the

prosecution and the effect the case had on domestic and international perceptions regarding the ethical state of American Law

The Factual Background

On May 6 1994 , a former state employee in the Arkansas state government Paula Jones had sued Bill Clinton for sexual harassment while he was the Governor of Arkansas . In August 1994 , Judge Kenneth Starr had been appointed as an independent counsel to investigate a real estate deal called Whitewater in which Bill Clinton was reportedly involved . Kenneth Starr during the course of his investigation found very little evidence to support his case for Clinton 's involvement in the Whitewater case but had persevered trying to find some thing to link Clinton to misdemeanors

Meanwhile , President Clinton has embarked on a secret sexual liaison with a young White House intern , Monica Lewinsky in the period 1995 to 1997 who confided about her involvement with the President to her `friend ' Linda Tripp who secretly began taping the...