LYCOMING COUNTY, Pa. — After Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives voted unanimously to approve a formal impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden, Newswatch 16 sat down with Ben Kantack, Ph.D., a political science professor at Lycoming College, to understand what all of this means.
"It allows the House to have a little more authority when trying to access documents or call witnesses," Kantack said.
Prof. Kantack says investigators will now begin to look for evidence centered around allegations that President Biden abused his powers.
"Was President Joe Biden in some way using his influence to enrich his family members? This could fall under bribery or high crimes and misdemeanors category under impeachable offenses," stated Kantack.
Once evidence is gathered, the House could vote to impeach the President. However, Kantack says it's unlikely the president will be removed from office.
"Impeach means to accuse of wrongdoing. If the president is impeached, just like Trump, it will go to the Senate for a trial. It seems very unlikely that there would be enough support in the Senate to convict and remove him," he added.
Historically, undergoing the impeachment process of a president is very rare, but Kantack believes times are changing. He says impeachment may become a political tool ahead of an election.
"Probably since Bill Clinton, the idea has been that even if we don't have enough votes to remove, it is a way to embarrass a president and a way to drag their name through the mud," Kantack added.
There is no timetable for how long this impeachment inquiry process will take.