The House Of Representatives Voted By A Margin Of 258 To 176 To Authorize A Formal Impeachment Inquiry Into President William Jefferson Clinton. The Vote Was Captured In H. Res. 581, Which Directed The House Committee On The Judiciary To Investigate Whether Sufficient Grounds Existed For Impeachment. Thirty-One Democrats Joined Republicans In Supporting The Resolution. This Vote Marked A Pivotal Turning Point In The Clinton-Lewinsky Saga And In The History Of Congressional Oversight.
The Inquiry Did Not Begin In Isolation. It Grew From The Release In September 1998 Of The Starr Report, Prepared By Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr, Which Alleged That President Clinton Had Committed Perjury, Obstructed Justice, And Misused His Power In Connection With His Relationship With Monica Lewinsky And His Testimony In The Paula Jones Lawsuit. The House Already Had Instituted A “Deliberative Review” Of Starr’s Findings, And The Judiciary Committee Had Voted On October 5, 1998, By A Party-Line Vote Of 21 To 16, To Recommend That A Formal Inquiry Be Launched.
When The House Authorized The Inquiry On October 8, Its Action Exercised A Constitutional Power Reserved Solely To The House: The Power Of Impeachment. The U.S. Constitution Charges The House With The Sole Authority To “Impeach” Federal Officials, While The Senate Acts As The Court For Impeachment Trials. The Vote Signaled That The House Was Willing To Invoke That Power Against A Sitting President In A Highly Contentious Political Climate.
The Vote Was Not Merely Legalistic. It Reflected Political Calculus, Public Opinion, And The Interplay Of Party Loyalties. Republicans Held The Majority In The House At That Time. Speaker Newt Gingrich Had Already Endorsed A Strong Approach Against President Clinton. The Decision To Authorize The Inquiry Was Part Of A Broader Strategy To Leverage The Starr Report, Seek Evidence, And Potentially Bring Articles Of Impeachment To The Floor.
The Authorization Empowered The Judiciary Committee To Investigate, Subpoena Witnesses, Review Evidence, And Formulate Proposed Articles Of Impeachment. Because Much Of The Investigatory Work Had Already Been Conducted By Starr’s Office, The Committee’s Role Emphasized Formalizing And Presenting Evidence To The Full House.
In The Days And Weeks That Followed, The Committee Held Hearings, Questioned Witnesses, And Debated Privilege And Legal Standards. By Mid-December 1998, The Committee Approved Four Articles Of Impeachment—Two For Perjury (One For False Statements To A Grand Jury, One For Deception In The Paula Jones Case), One For Obstruction Of Justice, And One For Abuse Of Power.
On December 19, 1998, Following Intense Floor Debate, The House Voted To Adopt Two Of Those Articles—Perjury Before The Grand Jury And Obstruction Of Justice—With Margins Of 228–206 And 221–212, Respectively. The Other Two Articles (Perjury In The Jones Case And Abuse Of Power) Were Rejected. Thus President Clinton Became The Second U.S. President Ever To Be Impeached (Following Andrew Johnson).
In The Senate Trial That Followed From January 7 To February 12, 1999, Clinton Was Acquitted On Both Articles, As Neither Garnered The Required Two-Thirds Vote (67 “Guilty” Votes). On The Perjury Article The Senate Vote Was 45 Guilty / 55 Not Guilty; On The Obstruction Article It Was 50 Guilty / 50 Not Guilty. Thus Clinton Remained In Office For The Remainder Of His Term.
The Historical Significance Of The October 8 Authorization Lies In Its Symbol As Well As Its Outcome. It Marked The Moment When The House Asserted That The Evidence Presented Was Sufficient To Trigger The Most Serious Constitutional Remedy Short Of Removal. It Tested The Boundaries Of The Impeachment Power, Especially With Respect To Conduct That Many Observers Argued Might Be Private Or Related To Civil Litigation Rather Than Official Duty. The Vote Also Came Amid Deep Partisan Division, Heightened Media Scrutiny, And Public Debate About The Limits Of Presidential Immunity And The Meaning Of “High Crimes And Misdemeanors.”
Because The House Moved First From Authorization To Investigation To Drafting Articles, The October 8 Vote Anchors The Formal Impeachment Process In The Clinton Case. It Has Served Since As A Referential Precedent In Later Debates Over Impeachment, Reinforcing That Authorization Of An Inquiry Does Not Itself Imply Guilt But Represents A Formal Charge Of Serious Constitutional Concern.
References / More Knowledge:
“Impeachment Inquiry Into Bill Clinton.” Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Impeachment_inquiry_into_Bill_Clinton
“The Impeachment Of President William Clinton: A Chronology.” Famous Trials, https://www.famous-trials.com/clinton/881-chronology
“H. Rept. 105-830 – Impeachment Of William Jefferson Clinton.” Congress.gov, https://www.congress.gov/committee-report/105th-congress/house-report/830
“The Impeachment Of Bill Clinton.” Teaching American History, https://teachingamericanhistory.org/document/articles-of-impeachment/
“Miller Center, The Clinton Impeachment And Its Fallout.” Miller Center, https://millercenter.org/the-presidency/impeachment/clinton-impeachment-and-its-fallout
“Clinton Impeachment Timeline.” Brooklyn College History Department, https://academic.brooklyn.cuny.edu/history/johnson/clintontimeline.htm