And ultimately, the question is what is best for the people of this country. To some, this is a distinction without a difference. As our predecessors on this committee recognized 24 years ago, impeachment is reserved for grave offenses against the state, those that threaten our system of government. Not all crimes are impeachable. One must examine the conduct in question to determine whether it is impeachable.
Most offenses undermine one thing or another.
That is why they are proscribed by the criminal law. Most people would agree that running a red light does not fall within that narrow category of offenses that are impeachable. But if everyone did it, countless people would die on unsafe streets. So the question isn't whether lying under oath or perjury undermines the system of justice in a general sense. The question is whether the specific conduct represents a grave offense against the state and is a threat to our system of government.