Review | American lawyer Alan Dershowitz argues against Trump impeachment in new book
The former defence attorney, famous for working on the O.J. Simpson case, contends he is not an advocate for the US president, but for civil liberties
The Case Against Impeaching Trump
by Alan Dershowitz
Hot Books
3/5 stars
Published speedily, this volume is more of an essay with a rehash of opinion pieces and transcripts of interviews Dershowitz has given on the subject. The repetition that results might annoy some readers, but it highlights his consistency, meaning the criminal defence lawyer famed for defending everyone from O.J. Simpson to Michael Milken can be depended on to argue that impeaching Trump would be constitutionally wrong.
Acknowledging his new pariah status among liberals who now see him as a Trump advocate, Dershowitz contends he is simply defending civil liberties the way he would have for Hillary Clinton (had she won) or anyone else. A president can be impeached and removed “only if he has committed a designated high crime and misdemeanour”, he writes, adding that the alleged “political sins” of Trump should not be turned into prosecutable crimes.
As to whether 45 could pardon himself, he believes we will never know whether this is even constitutionally permissible.