Ousting Trump via 25th Amendment is ‘an attempt at a coup d’etat’

Harvard Law professor Alan Dershowitz on Thursday said the Department of Justice’s discussions to employ the 25th Amendment to oust President Trump-- if true-- amounted to a coup.

Alan Dershowitz

Dershowitz appeared on Fox News’ “Tucker Carlson Tonight,” to give his take on former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe’s descriptions of Justice Department meetings where he said officials discussed ousting the president.

Evoking the 25th Amendment, Dershowitz said, would be a fundamental misuse of its original purpose. It was originally “about Woodrow Wilson having a stroke. It’s about a president being shot and not being able to perform his office,” Dershowitz added.

“Trying to use the 25th Amendment to try and circumvent the Election is a despicable act of unconstitutional power grabbing...which happens in third world countries. You have to obey the law. This is an attack on our system & Constitution.” Alan Dershowitz. @TuckerCarlson

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 15, 2019

Dershowitz said any DOJ official who discussed the 25th Amendment in the context of ousting the president “has committed a grievous offense against the Constitution.” Dershowitz further argued that using the 25th Amendment to circumvent the impeachment process or an election, “is a despicable act of unconstitutional power grabbing.”

Dershowitz' comments start at the 18:30 Time-Mark: