Senate Impeachment Trial of Bill Clinton (1999)
On January 7, 1999, one of the most famous scandals of our time began to play out in the Senate. President Bill Clinton had been impeached by the House of Representatives on charges of perjury and obstruction of justice, and the charges of perjury and obstruction of justice were brought before the Senate. If found guilty, the impeachment would stand. If found innocent, Clinton would be acquitted.
Clinton was impeached on December 19, 1998, by the House of Representatives on grounds of perjury to a grand jury (by a 228-206 vote) and obstruction of justice (by a 221-212 vote). Clinton became the first elected U.S. president to be impeached.
Clinton’s Senate trial began on January 7, 1999, and lasted until February 12. Chief Justice of the United States William Rehnquist presided over the trial. Despite the scandals plaguing him, opinion polls showed that Clinton's job approval rating now surpassed 70%, and most Americans favored a speedy conclusion of the Senate trial.
A two-thirds majority, 67 votes, would have been necessary to convict and remove the President from office. The Senate defeated the perjury charge with 45 votes for conviction and 55 against. The obstruction of justice charge was split evenly, 50 for and 50 against the President.
The United States Senate acquitted Clinton on February 12, 1999