The Constitutionality of Censuring the President

Legal Sidebari

The Constitutionality of Censuring the
President
March 12, 2018
House Democrats have introduced a resolution that, if approved by the House, would formally “censure
and condemn” President Trump for disparaging comments on immigration issues he allegedly made
during a meeting with Members of Congress. This is the second presidential “censure” resolution
introduced in the House this Congress. While each house of Congress has authority to discipline its own
Members through censure, congressional censure of the President is rare. For that reason, there seems to
be a recurring question as to whether Congress has the constitutional authority to adopt such a measure at
all. As discussed below, it would appear that Congress may censure the President through a simple (one
chamber) or concurrent (two chamber) resolution, or other non-binding measure, so long as the censure
does not carry with it any legal consequence. This Sidebar will discuss examples of congressional censure
of the President before addressing its constitutional validity.
While Black’s Law Dictionary defines censure as “an official reprimand or condemnation…,” in practice,
there is no clear rule for determining the legislative actions that may qualify as a “censure” of the
President. Viewed broadly, censure of the President could include any legislative measure formally
adopted by the House or Senate that expresses that body’s disagreement with specific presidential
conduct. Using this definition, the first congressional censure of the President seemingly occurred in 1834
after President Andrew Jackson removed his Treasury Secretary for refusing to withdraw government
deposits from the Bank of the United States. The approved Senate resolution stated that President Jackson
had “assumed upon himself authority and power not conferred by the constitution and laws, but in
derogation of both.” The Jackson resolution was subject to some debate, and three years later—once the
President’s supporters regained control of the Senate—the resolution was officially expunged from the
Senate Journal. Similarly, in 1842, the House adopted a committee report that contained language
criticizing President John Tyler’s use of the veto, accusing him of a “gross abuse of constitutional power”
by which he had “assumed…the whole legislative power to himself....” Other possible examples of
presidential censure under this definition are discussed here.
Viewed narrowly, however, censure may be limited to those instances in which a house of Congress
adopts a resolution not only stating its disagreement with presidential conduct, but also announcing that it
finds the conduct worthy of an explicit and official reprimand. Using this definition, the only previously
approved presidential censure appears to have occurred in 1860 when the House adopted a resolution
stating that President James Buchanan deserved the “reproof of this House” for awarding federal contracts
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to party loyalists. If adopted, the proposed censure of President Trump appears to fall into this category, as
it would expressly “censure and condemn” the President.
Although historical practice can be informative in interpreting the powers of the branches, the fact that the
House or Senate has previously censured the President does not necessarily make that act constitutional.
The general arguments against Congress’s authority to censure the President, which have been made both
inside and outside of Congress, can generally be reduced to three principal assertions. Neither argument,
however, appears to prohibit the approval of a non-binding censure resolution, however defined.
Argument: There is no explicit constitutional authorization for censure.
It is true that the Constitution does not specifically provide Congress with the authority to censure the
President. But Congress wields a number of implied powers. For example, the Constitution does not
explicitly authorize Congress to engage in oversight, conduct hearings, issue subpoenas, or hold witnesses
in contempt, but the Supreme Court has nonetheless affirmed that such authority exists. At least in some
instances then, the absence of authority does not necessarily equate to a proscription. Moreover, because
typical censure resolutions are non-binding expressions of opinion that do not alter legal rights, it is not
clear that any constitutional authorization is strictly necessary. Both the House and Senate routinely pass
resolutions expressing the “sense” or viewpoint of the body, without express authority to do so.
Argument: Impeachment is the exclusive means by which Congress can punish an executive branch
official.
It has been argued that impeachment is the exclusive means by which the Constitution permits either
house of Congress to punish an executive branch official. For example, President Jackson argued in
opposition to his censure that “[i]t is only in the exercise of its judicial powers, when sitting as a court for
the trial of impeachments, that the Senate is expressly authorized and necessarily required to consider and
decide upon the conduct of the President or any other public officer.” This argument appears to
misconstrue the role of impeachment and its relationship to censure. Impeachment is “exclusive” in two
ways, neither of which appear to implicate censure. First, impeachment is the exclusive means by which
Congress may remove an executive branch official. Second, in exercising the impeachment power,
Congress may impose no additional “judgment” (or punishment) beyond removal from office and/or
disqualification from holding future office. While censure may sometimes be viewed as an alternative to
impeachment, it is entirely separate from that constitutional process. Censure is not an attempt to remove
an official, and it is not a “judgment” resulting from an impeachment proceeding. Thus, it does not appear
that the impeachment provisions should be read as prohibiting the use of censure resolutions.
Argument: A censure resolution violates the Bill of Attainder Clause.
Finally, it has also been argued that presidential censure violates the Constitution’s prohibition on bills of
attainder. The Supreme Court has generally described the Bill of Attainder Clause (Clause) as prohibiting
legislatively imposed “punishment” on an identifiable individual or group. The primary question appears
to be whether a nonbinding censure qualifies as a prohibited form of legislative “bill” that imposes
“punishment.”
A “bill” in the procedural and constitutional sense is the legislative vehicle used by the House and Senate
to enact laws. All bills must comply with the constitutional lawmaking process, meaning the measure
must be approved by both the House and the Senate and sent to the President for his signature or veto
before taking effect. Simple resolutions and concurrent resolutions (as opposed to joint resolutions) are
not bills, and need not comply with the constitutional process. The Supreme Court appears to concur with
this understanding of “bill” in the Clause, concluding in Nixon v. GSA that a bill of attainder is “a law”
imposing legislative punishment on an identifiable individual. To the contrary, proponents of the position
that the Clause applies to a variety of legislative vehicles, including resolutions, may point to a passage
from United States v. Lovett in which the Supreme Court suggested that the Clause applies to all

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“legislative acts, no matter what their form…” However, Lovett was a case involving a congressional
attempt to limit the use of federal funds to pay the salaries of specific federal employees. Rather than
expanding the scope of the Clause beyond laws to cover other legislative vehicles, the cited passage
appears to have been made in order to suggest that the Clause covers both substantive legislation and
enacted appropriations. The Court has at times viewed the lawmaking power broadly, for example,
holding that a congressional investigation “is not a law,” but is “nevertheless…part of lawmaking.” More
recently, however, “legislative acts” have been viewed as those that “alter legal rights and obligations,”
which a simple or concurrent resolution does not, and indeed cannot, do. Therefore, it would appear that a
censure in the form of a one house resolution, concurrent resolution, or report language may not qualify
as either a “bill” or a “law,” as it would not be presented to the President, and in the case of a one house
resolution or report, would not be passed by both houses of Congress.
Even assuming for argument that the Clause covers such resolutions, it does not appear that a censure
resolution could be viewed as imposing “punishment,” since it lacks legal force and generally announces
only the view or opinion of one house of Congress. Non-tangible harm, such as the reputational injury
that might result from a public censure by the House or Senate, is not the type of harm generally viewed
as punishment for purposes of the Clause. Instead, the Court has described historically prohibited forms
of punishment under the Clause as imprisonment, banishment, confiscation of property, or barring
participation in specific employment. It may be argued, however, that a concurring opinion in Joint Anti-
Fascist Refugee Committee v. McGrath, which suggested that “the classic bill of attainder was a
condemnation by the legislature….,” supports a conclusion that a mere reprimand could constitute
punishment. That statement, however, was dicta, and made during a discussion in which the concurring
Justice made the seemingly sweeping claim that the Clause should be read to prohibit not only acts by the
legislature, but also by the Executive. Yet, there are limited examples in which the judiciary, in the
absence of more traditional forms of punishment, has applied a “functional” or “motivational” approach
to determine whether an act imposes punishment. Under these more flexible tests, it would seem an
argument could be made that a resolution that explicitly reprimands or condemns the President is likely
intended to punish. But under either test, the Court has not found a violation of the Clause when the law
“can be said to further nonpunitive legislative purposes.” It would appear that even when a resolution
contains language of an explicit reprimand, the body may be able to articulate a legitimate reason for the
censure, such as ensuring that the body’s position is known or to dissuade the President from engaging in
similar conduct in the future.
The bill of attainder analysis may change, however, depending on the legislative vehicle and actual
consequence of any given censure measure. If, for example, Congress was able to enact a law or joint
resolution that censured the President while also imposing some additional tangible punishment—such as
a fine—that measure may qualify as a “bill” that imposes “punishment” in violation of the Clause.


Author Information

Todd Garvey

Legislative Attorney

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