The Perils of Presidential Impeachment

Abstract

For a long time, I have suspected that there is more than one Richard Posner. There is the extremely prolific scholar, Richard Posner, who has written over thirty books' and more than a hundred articles in such fields as torts, constitutional law, criminal law and procedure, federal jurisdiction, moral and political philosophy, antitrust, economics, property, and contracts. There is also Richard Posner the judicial biographer and the man who founded an antitrust counseling firm. There is Richard Posner the judge who has been on the federal court of appeals for almost two decades, is reputed to be one of the most prolific and fastest judges in the nation, and has risen to the chief judgeship of his circuit. And there is the Richard Posner who writes about the intersection of law and such varied areas as sex, aging, literature, and AIDS. In his new book, An Affair of State: The Investigation, Impeachment, and Trial of President Clinton, virtually all of these dimensions of Richard Posner are present. It is a wonderfully elegant and provocative book and is sure to be among the most distinguished in the anticipated long line of commentaries on President Clinton's im2 peachment ordeal. In characteristic fashion, Posner pulls no punches,