Dershowitz Debunks Bolton Book: If True, Revelations Don’t Rise to Impeachable Offenses

Day two of arguments from President Trump’s legal team in the US Senate impeachment trial kicked off this afternoon. Today we heard from some on his team we haven’t seen before in the impeachment trial, Alan Dershowitz, Ken Starr, and others, as well as some who were part of the opening arguments on Saturday, Pam Bondi and Patrick Philbin.

Jay Sekulow has been giving an introduction to the Senate for each of the lawyers before they present their arguments to the Senate. Sekulow introduced Dershowitz as the Former Felix Frankfurter Professor of Law at Havard. Dershowitz clerked for Justice David Bazelon of the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit and Justice Arthur Goldberg of the Supreme Court. Dershowitz addresses the constitutional issues raised by the articles of impeachment.

Dershowitz addresses the Senate for over an hour. Dershowitz has kept it no secret that he did not vote for President Donald Trump in 2016, he did vote for Hillary Clinton. Dershowitz had previously addressed the Senate on the impeachments of Richard Nixon, who he abhorred and favored impeachment, as well as Bill Clinton, who he admired and whos impeachment he opposed.

Dershowitz says he would be making the same arguments for Hilliary Clinton had she become the president in 2016, had a Republican House impeached her on the same unconstitutional grounds. He does this for the love of his country and the constitution.

Dershowitz started to trend on Twitter during his speech. He brings up the NY Times article which was released Sunday, about former national security advisor John Bolton’s manuscript, alleges that Trump tied Ukraine aid to political favors. Dershowitz exclaims even if it is true it wouldn’t constitute an impeachable offense. “Let me repeat, nothing in the Bolton revelations even if true would rise to the level of an abuse of power or impeachable offense… You cannot turn conduct that is not impeachable to impeachable simply by using words like Quid Pro Quo and personal benefit.” See video clip from Media Right News on Twitter below:

Dershowitz destroys Bolton rumors… pic.twitter.com/PmUsHX2R17

— Media Right News (@MediaRightNews1) January 28, 2020

@GOP tweeted a clip of Dershowitz which includes a text quote from Rep. Maxine Waters(D-CA) who is well known for the phrase ‘Impeach 45’. The text quote from Waters says “Impeachment is whatever Congress says it is. THERE IS NO LAW.” Dershowitz’s response to this is laid out in the tweet from @GOP “For Congress to ignore the specific words of the Constitution itself and substitute its own judgments would be for Congress to do what it is accusing the president of doing.” See tweet below:

“For Congress to ignore the specific words of the Constitution itself and substitute its own judgments would be for Congress to do what it is accusing the President of doing.” -Alan Dershowitzpic.twitter.com/68P3L7fn0d

— GOP (@GOP) January 28, 2020

Chairwoman of the GOP Ronna McDaniels tweeted out a clip of Dershowitz where he calls the Democrats’ impeachment articles “standard-less”. See tweet below:

Liberal law professor Alan Dershowitz exposed purely partisan nature of Democrats’ weak case.

Both of Democrats’ impeachment articles are “standard-less” and totally rely on partisan interpretation. pic.twitter.com/VLJbXVbuEL

— Ronna McDaniel (@GOPChairwoman) January 28, 2020

Dershowitz also lays out a list of Presidents that would have been impeached under the Democrats’ “view of the Constitution”. See in the tweet below from @RNCResearch:

Dershowitz lists Presidents that would have been impeached under Democrats’ "view of the Constitution"https://t.co/QIaR0mC0wJ pic.twitter.com/Vzq0FUsB11

— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) January 28, 2020

Elizabeth Warren also tweeted out about Dershowitz’s argument calling it contrary to both law & fact. See tweet below:

Alan Dershowitz’s argument is contrary to both law & fact.

— Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) January 28, 2020

Laura Ingraham seems to have enjoyed Dershowitz’s arguments calling him the best of the day. See tweet below:

Dershowitz by far is the best of the day. A liberal defending the Constitution…persuasive and insightful analysis. Bondi also filleted the Bidens.

— Laura Ingraham (@IngrahamAngle) January 28, 2020