SUMMARY
House Republicans voted to open an impeachment inquiry into President Biden and his family's business dealings. Lisa Desjardins reports on the developments and William Brangham discusses the inquiry with Michael Gerhardt, author of "The Law of Presidential Impeachment: A Guide for the Engaged Citizen."
For a transcript of this story, click here. Note that this lesson is based on the second half of this segment (see time code that starts at 5:14 below).
Time codes
Start — Correspondent Lisa Desjardins explains movement in Congress and polls showing reaction to impeachment
5:14 — Guest Michael Gerhardt discusses impeachment
News wrap alternative: Check out recent segments from the NewsHour, and choose the story you’re most interested in watching. You can make a Google doc copy of discussion questions that work for any of the stories here.
WARM UP QUESTIONS:
- Who is Michael Gerhardt, and what is his background?
- What is the reason behind the Republicans' impeachment investigation?
- Why are the Republicans opening the impeachment investigation now?
- Where will the investigation take place and when is it likely to be completed?
- How have Democrats and Biden reacted to the impeachment investigation?
FOCUS QUESTIONS
Why do you think Republicans are opening an impeachment investigation into President Biden now, even though they've been conducting investigations already for the past year?
Media literacy: Why do you think NewsHour producers chose Michael Gerhardt as a guest for this segment?
Alternative: See, Think, Wonder: What did you notice? What did the story make you think? What story would you want to find out more about? Where would you go to learn more?
FOR MORE
What students can do: Learn how Congress decides to vote on impeachment investigations. Watch a portion of the segment below, which includes arguments by both Democratic and Republican Congress members. What do you see, think or wonder about the arguments being made? What goals do you think the Representatives have in making these arguments?
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