The President, Vice President and all civil Officers of the United States, shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.
— Article II, Section 4 of the United States Constitution
It has been slightly more than two months since President Trump assumed office and deputized entrepreneur Elon Musk to fundamentally reshape the executive branch of the federal government. Symbolically wielding his chainsaw and ignoring the constraints imposed by the United States Constitution on the arbitrary exercise of power, Musk has sown chaos and wreaked havoc on government agencies that provide essential services for millions of Americans. For his actions, he should be impeached, convicted and removed from any further role in government.
James Madison, regarded as the “Father of the American Constitution” noted that impeachment was to be used to reach a bad officer sheltered by the President and to remove him “even against the will of the President; so that the declaration in the Constitution was intended as a supplementary security for the good behavior of the public officers.”
Two questions immediately arise. The first, is Elon Musk “a civil officer” subject to impeachment? There is no explicit guidance in the Constitution itself, but historical practice suggests that, aside from judges, a “civil officer” is appointed by the President and exercises significant authority. In this context, Elon Musk fits the bill. He was personally appointed by the President and exercises more unconstrained authority than any other official in the President’s domain.
The second question is whether Musk has committed “other high crimes and misdemeanors.” George Mason, another Framer of the Constitution, is responsible for this language. He intended the language to be a broad category that swept in not only crimes like bribery, but abuse of power and other violations of the public trust.
The bill of particulars against Musk is myriad. He has purported to freeze Congressionally appropriated funds, declared himself the sole arbiter of his multibillion dollar conflicts of interest, fired thousands of federal workers based on unfounded assertions of poor job performance, invaded numerous federal databases that are and must be confidential according to laws passed by Congress, attempted to fully shut down federal agencies that are established by law, irrevocably harmed America’s ability to bring about desired international change through diplomacy and persuasion rather than through coercion and threats, undermined its standing in the world by gutting USAID, and further denigrated the rule of law by calling for the impeachment of judges deciding against him and by openly advocating that the administration ignore unfavorable rulings of the Nation’s courts.
The current make-up of Congress makes it highly unlikely that the House would adopt articles of impeachment or that the Senate would vote to convict. However, that dynamic could well change as the American public and their elected representatives come to appreciate the full extent of the harm that Musk has inflicted on the Nation… and especially so were President Trump to extend Musk’s temporary appointment and his license to cause further damage to the Republic. Ultimately Congress may not render judgment, but history most assuredly will.
• Bruce Botelho served as Alaska’s attorney general under Governors Wally Hickel and Tony Knowles and four terms as mayor of Juneau.
