Constitutional Crisis

   The candidate now warns of a constitutional crisis if his opponent wins the presidency, because she will then be investigated and prosecuted in a criminal case.
   Yes, it would be a constitutional crisis if someone launched a criminal prosecution against a sitting President. That, however, would depend on how far such an attempt got, since the Constitution says nothing about such a thing. It does, however, provide for impeachment by the House of Representatives, a trial on those charges in the Senate, presided over by the chief justice of the Supreme Court. Moreover, on conviction, there can only be removal from office. The Constitution says nothing about jail time.
   There have been only two occasions when a President was impeached, and neither was convicted. Those two sitting Presidents were Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton. Richard Nixon was facing an impeachment vote by the House, but resigned before the vote was taken. Therefore, it cannot be said that Nixon was impeached.
   Whether a sitting President could be investigated, indicted, prosecuted and imprisoned in a criminal case is a question ripe for discussion in law schools and practitioners of that sometimes arcane field.
   And whether a sitting President is immune from prosecution in a civil case is yet another legalistic problem.
   Nonetheless, the constitutional realities have not stopped an angry candidate from demanding just such an action. Such talk may play well in some parts of the country, but a prerequisite for such legal action is a firm knowledge of the Constitution.