Impeachment is the only option presented in the Constitution. However, Congress could theoretically censure or reprimand the President by adopting a resolution condemning his behavior. The House and Senate could adopt separate censure resolutions, or both chambers could adopt the same concurrent resolution. The resolution would serve simply as a public statement of rebuke. It could not contain any binding sanctions nor any legal mandates.

The Senate censured a President once; but the censure was removed from the official record three years later. The House has never voted to censure a President. In 1834, President Andrew Jackson became the target of a Senate censure resolution in an early precursor to "executive privilege." Jackson had withheld from the Senate papers they wished to inspect regarding the rechartering of the second Bank of the United States. Jackson's response to the censure was simply to refuse to accept the rebuke, and continue his policies. When President Jackson's fellow Democrats regained the majority, they cited the censure as unconstitutional and expunged it from the Senate Journal in 1837.

Censure is usually a formal condemnation by the House or Senate of one of its own Members. It rebukes a Member for specific behavior considered to be inappropriate or demeaning to the institution. Article I, section 5, clause 2 of the U.S. Constitution grants Congress the authority to "punish its Members for disorderly Behaviour." From that grant of authority, Congress has denounced, reprimanded, censured, or expelled its Members.

Since 1976, four Members of the House have been censured: for salary kickbacks from staff, for having "ghost employees," for improper personal use of campaign funds, and for sexual misconduct with House pages. Earlier examples of censure applied against House Members were for assaulting another Member, insulting the Speaker, uttering treason, and using offensive language on the floor. Senators have been censured for revealing secret information, financial misconduct, misuse of campaign funds, assault on another Senator, disloyalty (during the Civil War), and for offensive remarks on the floor.

The last House Members to have been censured were Daniel Crane (R-IL) and Gerry Studds (D-MA) in 1983, for engaging in sexual relations with congressional pages: Crane with a 17-year-old female page and Studds with a 17-year-old male page. The last Senator censured was Senator David Durenberger (R-MN), for financial misconduct in 1990.

Resolutions of censure are adopted by a majority vote. After the House votes censure, the Member must come forward to the well of the House, and be denounced before the entire body by the presiding officer. This is usually done by reading aloud the text of the censure resolution. The Member does not speak. House party rules further mandate that in the case of censure, the Member may no longer hold within that Congress any leadership position within the party, such as a committee or subcommittee chairmanship. The Senate has no provision for removal from leadership posts after censure. Senate practice permits the offending Senator to address his/her colleagues during the censure deliberations.