Famed lawyer Alan Dershowitz said that comments made by President Trump on Thursday suggesting he might interfere with the Justice Department wouldn’t add to Trump’s “legal vulnerability.”
But the Harvard Law School professor emeritus did concede the comments weren’t necessarily beneficial for the president.
“I don’t think he increases his legal vulnerability, but he certainly doesn’t seem to help his case when he makes statements like this,” Dershowitz told CNN anchor Anderson Cooper Thursday night.
During a “Fox & Friends” phone interview Thursday morning, Trump warned that he was “disappointed” in the Justice Department and said he tries to not be involved in the agency’s operations, “but at some point I won’t.”
Dershowitz cautioned that it was unclear what Trump meant.
“It may have been just musing about whether he has the power to do things with regard to the Justice Department, but he’s not going to exercise that power,” Dershowitz said. “I don’t know what he thinks he gains by making statements like that. I don’t think he picks up support among his followers with these kinds of statements.”
Trump’s comments did elicit some backlash among critics who thought he might be hinting at some sort of crackdown on the DOJ.
For instance, House Intelligence Committee ranking member Adam Schiff, D-Calif., warned that inference from Trump with the Justice Department would “not be tolerated.”
“Today Trump told Fox, ‘I’m very disappointed in my Justice Department’ and threatened to interfere in Russia probe,” Schiff tweeted Thursday. “Mr. President, it’s not your Justice Department; it belongs to the American people and serves the public interest, not yours. Any interference will not be tolerated.”
Today Trump told Fox, “I’m very disappointed in my Justice Department” and threatened to interfere in Russia probe. Mr. President, it’s not your Justice Department; it belongs to the American people and serves the public interest, not yours. Any interference will not be tolerated
— Adam Schiff (@RepAdamSchiff) April 26, 2018
Trump has long railed against the Justice Department and has routinely called the federal Russia investigation a “witch hunt.”
Special counsel Robert Mueller, who is spearheading the investigation, is looking at Russian interference in the 2016 election and whether the Trump campaign colluded with the Kremlin.
