Fact check: Is Donald Trump the first president to be impeached?

1. Summary of the results

1. Summary of the results:

Donald Trump was not the first president to be impeached - he was the third, following Andrew Johnson (1868) and Bill Clinton (1998). However, Trump holds the distinction of being the first president to be impeached twice, in 2019 and 2021.

2. Missing context/alternative viewpoints:

• The original question omits crucial information about the impeachment process: while the House of Representatives can impeach a president, removal from office requires a Senate conviction. None of the impeached presidents were actually removed from office.
• Trump's first impeachment was for abuse of power and obstruction of Congress, while his second was for incitement of insurrection following the January 6 Capitol riot.
• The term "impeachment" is often misunderstood - it is similar to an indictment, not a conviction or removal from office.

3. Potential misinformation/bias in the original statement:

The question itself could lead to misconceptions by:

• Implying that impeachment is extremely rare (while it has happened four times to three presidents)
• Not acknowledging that impeachment is a political process as much as a legal one. Political parties benefit from different interpretations of what constitutes "high crimes and misdemeanors" - Republicans generally advocated for narrow interpretation during Trump's impeachments, while Democrats pushed for broader interpretation. These positions were reversed during Clinton's impeachment in 1998.
• Not mentioning that Richard Nixon resigned before he could be impeached, which is an important part of impeachment history in American politics.