AMERICA ALMOST didn�t have a president.

The men who arrived at the constitutional

convention in 1787 brought with them a horror of monarchy. Absent a figure of
George Washington�s stature, the young country might have adopted a parliamentary
system of government. Yet having created the office, the founders had to devise a
way to remove presidents who abuse their positions�not all people are Washingtons.
They defined the mechanism: an impeachment vote in the House, followed by a trial
in the Senate. The question of what exactly a president should be impeached
for��treason, bribery or other high crimes and misdemeanours��was deliberately left
to Congress.
Hence, though impeachment is a constitutional provision, it is also a political
campaign. That campaign began in earnest this week when Nancy Pelosi directed her
Democratic colleagues in the House to begin impeachment hearings into President
Donald Trump. This will not necessarily lead to impeachment. In the past, though,
impeachment hearings have generated a momentum of their own. The process is fraught
with risks on both sides. One thing seems certain: the process will further divide
a country that is already set against itself.