Alan Dershowitz: Presidents Can Do Whatever They Want If They’re Seeking Re-Election

Alan Dershowitz, one of the members of President Donald Trump’s impeachment defense team, argued before the Senate on Wednesday that a quid pro quo cannot result in impeachment if the president believes it “will help him get elected in the public interest.”

During Wednesday’s question and answer session in the impeachment trial, Dershowitz—who previously had claimed he wasn’t a “full-fledged member” of the president’s legal squad—answered a question submitted by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) on whether it matters if there was a quid pro quo. (Cruz argued on Fox News Tuesday night that, in fact, it doesn’t matter if Trump engaged in one with Ukraine.)

Arguing that there are three possible motives for a president to engage in a quid pro quo in forign policy—personal interest, public interest, and financial interest—Dershowitz argued that a president withholding money to a foreign country so as they will help in his election would be within the public interest, which is not impeachable.

Read the rest of the piece at The Daily Beast.

Watch the clip above, via CNN.