Alan Dershowitz Retracts 1998 Claim There ‘Doesn’t Have To Be a Crime’ to Impeach a President
Harvard Law professor emeritus and sort-of member of Trump’s legal team Alan Dershowitz addressed an apparent conflict in his statements on impeachment on Twitter Tuesday, stating that he was retracting his comments from 1998.
Dershowitz argued in recent days that Trump cannot be impeached for abuse of power (whether the allegations of the Ukraine scandal hold up or not).
He faced scrutiny when an old clip was unearthed in which he said on CNN that there “doesn’t need to be a crime” to impeach a president if that person “corrupts the office,” “abuses trust,” and “poses great danger to our liberty.” This was a sharp contrast to Dershowitz’s current argument, and his retraction comes after he tried to reconcile his positions during a tense appearance on CNN.
“To the extent there are inconsistencies between my current position and what I said 22 years ago, I am correct today,” Dershowitz wrote Tuesday in a Twitter thread. “During the Clinton impeachment, the issue was not whether a technical crime was required, because he was charged with perjury. Therefore, I didn’t research the issue; I relied on the academic consensus that a crime was not required. In Trump impeachment, on the other hand, that is the critical issue, because abuse of power and obstruction of congress are neither crimes nor criminal-like behavior.”
“So I have now thoroughly researched the issue and concluded that although a technical crime with all the elements may not be required, criminal like behavior akin to treason and bribery is required,” he continued. “To the extent therefore that my 1998 off-the-cuff interview statement suggested the opposite, I retract it. Scholars learn to adapt and even change old views as they do more research.”
(1 of 3)To the extent there are inconsistencies between my current position and what I said 22 years ago, I am correct today. During the Clinton impeachment, the issue was not whether a technical crime was required, because he was charged with perjury.
— Alan Dershowitz (@AlanDersh) January 21, 2020
(2of 3
Therefore, I didn’t research the issue; I relied on the academic consensus that a crime was not required. In Trump impeachment, on the other hand, that is the critical issue, because abuse of power and obstruction of congress are neither crimes nor criminal- like behavior.— Alan Dershowitz (@AlanDersh) January 21, 2020
(3 of 3)So I have now thoroughly researched the issue and concluded that although a technical crime with all the elements may not be required, criminal like behavior akin to treason and bribery is required.
— Alan Dershowitz (@AlanDersh) January 21, 2020
(3 of 3 cont) To the extent therefore that my 1998 off-the-cuff interview statement suggested the opposite, I retract it. Scholars learn to adapt and even change old views as they do more research.
— Alan Dershowitz (@AlanDersh) January 21, 2020
