CNN's Jeffrey Toobin sadly chastises former mentor Alan Dershowitz for cozying up to Trump on Russia
Legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin sparred with Harvard Law School professor Alan Dershowitz in a Wednesday night Anderson Cooper 360 appearance, expressing disappointment in his former professor's views on Special Counsel Robert Mueller.
President Trump recently extolled Dershowitz's views on Twitter, sharing a paraphrased quote from a recent op-ed by the professor that opposed the decision to appoint a special counsel to investigate Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. Dershowitz defended his position Wednesday, arguing that the investigation should have been handled by a bipartisan "commission" or Justice Department officials.
Toobin appeared aghast at his former mentor's words — and immediately expressed as much. "I don't know what's going on with you," he said. When Dershowitz claimed that Mueller was obligated to "find crimes" rather than simply investigate the situation, the tension escalated.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"How has this come about that in every situation over the past year you have been carrying water for Donald Trump?" said Toobin. "This is not who you used to be. And you are doing this over and over again in situations that are just obviously ripe with conflict of interest. And it's just, like, what's happened to you?"
Dershowitz disagreed that his views were simply supportive of Trump. "I have attacked President Trump for many, many things," he said. "I'm not carrying his water. I'm saying exactly the same thing I've said for 50 years. And, Jeffrey, you ought to know that. You were my student. I have never deviated from this. I have never deviated from this point. The fact that it applies to Trump now, rather than applying to Bill Clinton, is why people like you have turned against me."
Watch the debate below, via CNN. Summer Meza
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Summer Meza has worked at The Week since 2018, serving as a staff writer, a news writer and currently the deputy editor. As a proud news generalist, she edits everything from political punditry and science news to personal finance advice and film reviews. Summer has previously written for Newsweek and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, covering national politics, transportation and the cannabis industry.
-
Nnela Kalu’s historic Turner Prize winTalking Point Glasgow-born artist is first person with a learning disability to win Britain’s biggest art prize
-
Bridget Riley: Learning to See – an ‘invigorating and magical ensemble’The Week Recommends The English artist’s striking paintings turn ‘concentration into reverie’
-
‘Stakeknife’: MI5’s man inside the IRAThe Explainer Freddie Scappaticci, implicated in 14 murders and 15 abductions during the Troubles, ‘probably cost more lives than he saved’, investigation claims
-
Judge orders release of Ghislaine Maxwell recordsSpeed Read The grand jury records from the 2019 prosecution of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein will be made public
-
Miami elects first Democratic mayor in 28 yearsSpeed Read Eileen Higgins, Miami’s first woman mayor, focused on affordability and Trump’s immigration crackdown in her campaign
-
Ex-FBI agents sue Patel over protest firingspeed read The former FBI agents were fired for kneeling during a 2020 racial justice protest for ‘apolitical tactical reasons’
-
Trump unveils $12B bailout for tariff-hit farmersSpeed Read The president continues to insist that his tariff policy is working
-
Trump’s Comey case dealt new setbackspeed read A federal judge ruled that key evidence could not be used in an effort to reindict former FBI Director James Comey
-
Moscow cheers Trump’s new ‘America First’ strategyspeed read The president’s national security strategy seeks ‘strategic stability’ with Russia
-
Trump tightens restrictions for work visasSpeed Read The length of work permits for asylum seekers and refugees has been shortened from five years to 18 months
-
Supreme Court revives Texas GOP gerrymanderSpeed Read Texas Republicans can use the congressional map they approved in August at President Donald Trump’s behest
