Longtime attorney Alan Dershowitz on Sunday hinted at a defense for President Donald Trump's riot incitement if he faces another impeachment trial in the Senate.
During an interview on Fox News, host Maria Bartiromo asked Dershowitz if he would defend the president at a second Senate trial.
"It will not go to trial," Dershowitz predicted. "All the Democrats can do is impeach the president in the House of Representatives. For that, all you need is a majority vote."
The attorney argued that the "case cannot come for trial in the Senate" because Trump will no longer be president.
"Congress has no power to impeach or try a private citizen, whether it be a private citizen named Donald Trump or named Barack Obama or anyone else," he opined.
Dershowitz said that he is "deeply" worried about the "impact of impeachment on the First Amendment."
"The Supreme Court basically said that what the president said on Wednesday -- as much as I disapprove of it and many people disapprove of it on its merits -- is protected by the First Amendment," he insisted. "It comes within core political speech. And to impeach a president for having exercised his First Amendment rights would be so dangerous to the Constitution."
"It would lie around like a loaded weapon, ready to be used by either party against the other party," Dershowitz said before referring to the deadly Capitol Hill riot as an "incident."
"Let us not let an incident that occurred on Wednesday destroy the Constitution of the United States," he added. "That is my goal, to protect the Constitution from overzealous advocates who want to weaponize it in the interests of temporary political gain."
