‘Kill the beast’: The impeachment trial that nearly took down a president 150 years ago

The president stood accused of racism and abuse of power, contempt for his enemies and a firing that subverted the rule of law.

Four weeks into President Andrew Johnson’s impeachment trial, his chief foe, the most ardent civil rights advocate in Congress, rose to speak. It was 150 years ago, but Thaddeus Stevens’s denunciation of Johnson still resonates today amid calls for President Trump’s impeachment.

Read the story at the Washington Post.