paragraph_text: State legislatures can impeach state officials, including governors. The court for the trial of impeachments may differ somewhat from the federal model -- in New York, for instance, the Assembly (lower house) impeaches, and the State Senate tries the case, but the members of the seven - judge New York State Court of Appeals (the state's highest, constitutional court) sit with the senators as jurors as well. Impeachment and removal of governors has happened occasionally throughout the history of the United States, usually for corruption charges. A total of at least eleven U.S. state governors have faced an impeachment trial; a twelfth, Governor Lee Cruce of Oklahoma, escaped impeachment conviction by a single vote in 1912. Several others, most recently Connecticut's John G. Rowland, have resigned rather than face impeachment, when events seemed to make it inevitable. The most recent impeachment of a state governor occurred on January 14, 2009, when the Illinois House of Representatives voted 117 - 1 to impeach Rod Blagojevich on corruption charges; he was subsequently removed from office and barred from holding future office by the Illinois Senate on January 29. He was the eighth U.S. state governor to be removed from office.

paragraph_text: At the federal level, Article I, Section 2, Clause 5 of the Constitution grants to the House of Representatives ``the sole power of impeachment '', and Article I, Section 3, Clause 6 grants to the Senate`` the sole Power to try all Impeachments''. In considering articles of impeachment, the House is obligated to base any charges on the constitutional standards specified in Article II, Section 4: ``The President, Vice President, and all civil Officers of the United States shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other High Crimes and Misdemeanors ''. (Full text of clauses)

paragraph_text: The United States presidential line of succession is the order in which persons may become or act as President of the United States if the incumbent President becomes incapacitated, dies, resigns or is removed from office. (A President can be removed from office by impeachment by the House of Representatives and subsequent conviction by the Senate.) The line of succession is set by the United States Constitution and the Presidential Succession Act of 1947 as subsequently amended to include newly created cabinet offices. The succession follows the order of Vice President, Speaker of the House of Representatives, President pro tempore of the Senate, and then the heads of federal executive departments who form the Cabinet of the United States, which currently has fifteen members, beginning with the Secretary of State. Those heads of departments who are ineligible to act as President are also ineligible to succeed the President by succession, for example most commonly if they are not a natural - born U.S. citizen.

paragraph_text: The proceedings unfold in the form of a trial, with each side having the right to call witnesses and perform cross-examinations. The House members, who are given the collective title of managers during the course of the trial, present the prosecution case, and the impeached official has the right to mount a defense with his own attorneys as well. Senators must also take an oath or affirmation that they will perform their duties honestly and with due diligence. After hearing the charges, the Senate usually deliberates in private. The Constitution requires a two thirds super majority to convict a person being impeached.

paragraph_text: Similar to the British system, Article One of the United States Constitution gives the House of Representatives the sole power of impeachment and the Senate the sole power to try impeachments of officers of the U.S. national government. (Various state constitutions include similar measures, allowing the state legislature to impeach the governor or other officials of the state government.) In contrast to the British system, in the United States impeachment is only the first of two stages, and conviction during the second stage requires a two - thirds majority vote. Impeachment does not necessarily result in removal from office; it is only a legal statement of charges, parallel to an indictment in criminal law. An official who is impeached faces a second legislative vote (whether by the same body or another), which determines conviction, or failure to convict, on the charges embodied by the impeachment. Most constitutions require a supermajority to convict. Although the subject of the charge is criminal action, it does not constitute a criminal trial; the only question under consideration is the removal of the individual from office, and the possibility of a subsequent vote preventing the removed official from ever again holding political office in the jurisdiction where he or she was removed. Impeachment with respect to political office should not be confused with witness impeachment.

paragraph_text: The Republic of Liberia, beginning as a settlement of the American Colonization Society (ACS), declared its independence on July 26, 1847. The United States did not recognize Liberia's independence until during the American Civil War on February 5, 1862. Between January 7, 1822 and the American Civil War, more than 15,000 freed and free-born Black Americans from United States and 3,198 Afro-Caribbeans relocated to the settlement. The Black American settlers carried their culture with them to Liberia. The Liberian constitution and flag were modeled after the United States. In January 3, 1848 Joseph Jenkins Roberts, a wealthy free-born Black American from Virginia who settled in Liberia, was elected as Liberia's first president after the people proclaimed independence.

paragraph_text: If both the President and the Vice President die, become permanently disabled, are removed from office, or resign - the President of the Senate or, in case of his inability, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, will act as President until a President or Vice-President is elected and qualifies.

paragraph_text: The United States presidential line of succession is the order in which persons may become or act as President of the United States if the incumbent President becomes incapacitated, dies, resigns, or is removed from office. (A President can be removed from office by impeachment by the House of Representatives and subsequent conviction by the Senate.) The line of succession is set by the United States Constitution and the Presidential Succession Act of 1947 as subsequently amended to include newly created cabinet offices. The succession follows the order of Vice President, Speaker of the House of Representatives, President pro tempore of the Senate, and then the heads of federal executive departments who form the Cabinet of the United States. The Cabinet currently has fifteen members, beginning with the Secretary of State, and followed by the rest in the order of their positions' creation. Those heads of department who are ineligible to act as President are also ineligible to succeed the President by succession, for example most commonly if they are not a natural - born U.S. citizen.

paragraph_text: The Senate also has a role in ratifying treaties. The Constitution provides that the president may only "make Treaties, provided two thirds of the senators present concur" in order to benefit from the Senate's advice and consent and give each state an equal vote in the process. However, not all international agreements are considered treaties under US domestic law, even if they are considered treaties under international law. Congress has passed laws authorizing the president to conclude executive agreements without action by the Senate. Similarly, the president may make congressional-executive agreements with the approval of a simple majority in each House of Congress, rather than a two-thirds majority in the Senate. Neither executive agreements nor congressional-executive agreements are mentioned in the Constitution, leading some scholars such as Laurence Tribe and John Yoo to suggest that they unconstitutionally circumvent the treaty-ratification process. However, courts have upheld the validity of such agreements.The Constitution empowers the House of Representatives to impeach federal officials for "Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors" and empowers the Senate to try such impeachments. If the sitting president of the United States is being tried, the chief justice of the United States presides over the trial. During an impeachment trial, senators are constitutionally required to sit on oath or affirmation. Conviction requires a two-thirds majority of the senators present. A convicted official is automatically removed from office; in addition, the Senate may stipulate that the defendant be banned from holding office. No further punishment is permitted during the impeachment proceedings; however, the party may face criminal penalties in a normal court of law.

paragraph_text: Impeachment proceedings may be commenced by a member of the House of Representatives on her or his own initiative, either by presenting a list of the charges under oath or by asking for referral to the appropriate committee. The impeachment process may be initiated by non-members. For example, when the Judicial Conference of the United States suggests a federal judge be impeached, a charge of actions constituting grounds for impeachment may come from a special prosecutor, the President, or state or territorial legislature, grand jury, or by petition.

paragraph_text: Dempsey James Barron (March 5, 1922 – July 7, 2001) was an American politician. He served as President of the Florida Senate from 1975–1976. He also was a long-standing Chairman of the Senate Rules Committee. He died of complications from Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease and heart problems on July 7, 2001.

paragraph_text: The presiding officer of the Senate is the Vice President of the United States, who is President of the Senate. In the Vice President's absence, the President Pro Tempore, who is customarily the senior member of the party holding a majority of seats, presides over the Senate. In the early 20th century, the practice of majority and minority parties electing their floor leaders began, although they are not constitutional officers.

paragraph_text: Committee on Rules 114th United States Congress Committee Logo History Founded April 2, 1789 (1789 - 04 - 02) New session started January 3, 2015 (2015 - 01 - 03) Leadership Chairman Pete Sessions (R) Since 2013 Ranking Member Louise Slaughter (D) Structure Seats 15 members Political groups Majority (11) Republican (11) Minority (4) Democratic (4) Website rules.house.gov

paragraph_text: The Constitution also provides for appointment of one of the elected senators to serve as President pro tempore. This senator presides when the vice president is absent from the body. The president pro tempore is selected by the body specifically for the role of presiding in the absence of (as the meaning of pro tempore, literally ``for the time being '') the actual presiding officer. By tradition, the title of President pro tempore has come to be given more - or-less automatically to the most senior senator of the majority party. In actual practice in the modern Senate, the president pro tempore also does not often serve in the role (though it is their constitutional right to do so). Instead, as governed by Rule I, they frequently designate a junior senator to perform the function.

paragraph_text: Joint sessions and meetings are usually held in the Chamber of the House of Representatives, and are traditionally presided over by the Speaker of the House. However, the Constitution requires the Vice President (as President of the Senate) to preside over the counting of electoral votes.

paragraph_text: Vice President of the United States Seal of the Vice President Flag of the Vice President Incumbent Mike Pence since January 20, 2017 United States Senate Executive branch of the U.S. government Office of the Vice President Style Mr. Vice President (informal) The Honorable (formal) Mr. President (as President of the Senate) His Excellency (international correspondence) Status Second - highest executive branch officer President of the Senate Member of Cabinet National Security Council National Space Council (Chairman) United States Senate (President) Residence Number One Observatory Circle Seat Washington, D.C. Nominator President of the United States, Political parties Appointer Electoral College of the United States Term length 4 years, no term limit Constituting instrument United States Constitution Formation March 4, 1789 (229 years ago) (1789 - 03 - 04) First holder John Adams April 21, 1789 Succession First Deputy President pro tempore of the United States Senate (in the Senate) Salary US $230,700 annually Website www.whitehouse.gov

paragraph_text: The House of Representatives has impeached sixteen officials, of whom seven were convicted. (One resigned before the Senate could complete the trial.) Only two presidents of the United States have ever been impeached: Andrew Johnson in 1868 and Bill Clinton in 1998. Both trials ended in acquittal; in Johnson's case, the Senate fell one vote short of the two-thirds majority required for conviction.

paragraph_text: No mention of an office of vice president was made at the 1787 Constitutional Convention until near the end, when an 11 - member committee on ``Leftover Business ''proposed a method of electing the president and vice president, and recommended that the vice president succeed the executive in the event of a vacancy in that position, but would otherwise serve as the president of the Senate, casting a vote only to break a tie. Although delegates approved establishing the office, with both its executive and senatorial functions, not many understood the extent of the vice president's duties. Only a few states had an analogous position. Among those that did, New York's constitution provided that,`` The lieutenant - governor shall, by virtue of his office, be president of the Senate, and, upon an equal division, have a casting voice in their decisions, but not vote on any other occasion.''

paragraph_text: George Vickers (November 19, 1801October 8, 1879), a Democrat, was a United States Senator from Maryland, serving from 1868 to 1873. He cast the deciding vote in the Senate that saved U.S. President Andrew Johnson from impeachment. Vickers also served in the Maryland State Senate.

paragraph_text: The United States presidential line of succession is the order in which persons may become or act as President of the United States if the incumbent president becomes incapacitated, dies, resigns, or is removed from office (by impeachment by the House of Representatives and subsequent conviction by the Senate). The line of succession is set by the United States Constitution and the Presidential Succession Act of 1947 as subsequently amended to include newly created cabinet offices. The succession follows the order of vice president, Speaker of the House of Representatives, President pro tempore of the Senate, and then the heads of federal executive departments who form the Cabinet of the United States. The Cabinet currently has fifteen members, beginning with the Secretary of State, and followed by the rest in the order of their positions' creation. Those heads of department who are ineligible to act as president are also ineligible to succeed the president by succession, for example most commonly if they are not a natural - born U.S. citizen.

Question: Which speaker of the government body that presides over the impeachment trial of the president of the country Liberia's constitution is modeled after also controlled the senate rules committee?
Answer: Pete Sessions (R