BLOGJune 08, 2017

Dershowitz: Get Out of the Weeds, No Obstruction of Justice With Comey

One of the great legal minds today is liberal Alan Dershowitz. Talking with Anderson Cooper on CNN following the release of James Comey's seven-page statement, Dershowitz had this to say:

Well, first of all, let's look at the big constitutional picture. The president could have told Comey, "You are commanded, directed to drop the prosecution against Flynn." The president has the right to do that. Comey acknowledges that. He says in the statement that historically, historically presidents have done that to the Justice Department.
The past few years we've had a tradition of separation, but that tradition doesn't create crime. And remember also what the president could have done. He could have said to Comey, "Stop this investigation. I am now pardoning Flynn."

"Two important points there, in what Dershowitz said. And one that's key in saying there was a tradition of separation between the Executive Branch and the Department of Justice, even though the head of the FBI and the attorney general all serve at the behest of the president. But he said, tradition does not make a crime," Mike Opelka said, filling in for Glenn on radio.

Dershowitz continued.

That's what President Bush did. In the beginning of the investigation of Caspar Weinberger, which could have led back to the White House, to the first President Bush. President Bush on the eve of the trial pardoned Caspar Weinberger, pardoned six people, and special counsel Walsh said this is outrageous. He's stopping the investigation. Nobody talked about obstruction of justice. You cannot have obstruction of justice, when the president exercises his constitutional authority to pardon, his constitutional authority to fire the director of the FBI or his constitutional authority to tell the director of the FBI who to prosecute, who not to prosecute. So let's get out of the weeds, and let's look at the big constitutional picture.

"So there it is. From one of the most respected legal minds in the country, who also happens to be a liberal. You cannot have obstruction of justice here," Opelka said.

Enjoy the complimentary clip or read the transcript for details.

MIKE: We're watching Comeyfefe 2017. Comeyfefe 2017 has the nation's attention. Or at least everybody who can avoid going to work today and sitting at home and watching Jim Comey tell us either nothing or that he'll tell the senators in private, or he's rehashing things we already knew. So gigantic waste of time for this giant nothing burger, except there was just a moment that was just captured, as Dianne Feinstein, the senator from California was talking to Jim Comey and mentioned the tapes, the tapes that Donald Trump alluded to, when he tweeted after Comey talked about his memo, when Donald Trump tweed that Jim Comey better hope -- better hope that I don't have tapes before he starts leaking things.

And this was the exchange.

VOICE: Why didn't you stop and say, "Mr. President, this is wrong. I cannot discuss this with you?"

JAMES: That's a great question. Maybe if I were stronger, I would have. I was so stunned by the conversation, that I just took it in. And the only thing I can think to say -- because I was playing in my mind -- because I could remember every word he said -- I was playing in my mind, "What should my response be?" And that's why I very carefully chose the words -- and, look, I've seen the tweet about tapes. Lordy, I hope there are tapes.

I -- I remember saying, "I agree. He's a good guy." As a way of saying, "I'm not agreeing with what you just asked me to do." Again, maybe other people would be stronger in that circumstance, but that was -- that's how I conducted myself. I hope I'll never have another opportunity. Maybe if I did it again, I'd do it better.

MIKE: And how long before we have T-shirts that say this...

JAMES: I've seen the tweet about tapes. Lordy, I hope there are tapes.

MIKE: Lordy, I hope there are tapes.

This is getting more bizarre by the moment. I can't even imagine this. And I also wonder what the hell the rest of the world is thinking. Now, one of the great legal minds in this world is a guy named Alan Dershowitz.

Alan Dershowitz is a liberal. Alan Dershowitz is not a guy that the G.O.P. would normally call in to say, hey, would you back us up on this?

And Alan Dershowitz was talking with Anderson Cooper last night on CNN. And they were discussing the seven-page statement that Comey put out, that was his opening statement today. So the whole world saw the opening statement already.

And in there, we have said there is no evidence of obstruction of justice. While the Democrats are all saying, "This is all obstruction of justice." At least the only guy who at CNN will say that is Jeffrey Toobin, and then every Democrat quotes Toobin saying, "Toobin says it. It must be obstruction." But Alan Dershowitz gave us some great clarity on this.

ANDERSON: Professor Dershowitz, you say this is not obstruction of justice by the president and that it actually strengthens his position against Director Comey. How so?

ALAN: Well, first of all, let's look at the big constitutional picture. The president could have told Comey, "You are commanded, directed to drop the prosecution against Flynn." The president has the right to do that. Comey acknowledges that. He says in the statement that historically -- historically presidents have done that to the Justice Department.

MIKE: So, first of all, let's remember this. Historically, presidents have been able to tell the Justice Department and actually have told the Justice Department, "Stop this investigation. It's within the power of the president. It's the president's right. It's part of his executive powers." Dershowitz continues.

ALAN: The past few years we've had a tradition of separation, but that tradition doesn't create crime. And remember also what the president could have done. He could have said to Comey, "Stop this investigation. I am now pardoning Flynn."

MIKE: Two important points there, in what Dershowitz said. And one that's key in saying there was a tradition of separation between the executive branch and the Department of Justice, even though the head of the FBI and the attorney general all serve at the behest of the president. But he said, tradition does not make a crime. Tradition does not make a crime. A really key point there. And he did say that the president has the right to say I'm pardoning Flynn. Therefore, there's no need for an investigation. End it here. Donald Trump didn't do that. But he had the power.

Comey -- or, Dershowitz continues.

ALAN: That's what President Bush did. In the beginning of the investigation of Caspar Weinberger, which could have led back to the White House, to the first President Bush. President Bush on the eve of the trial pardoned Caspar Weinberger, pardoned six people. And special counsel Walsh said this is outrageous. He's stopping the investigation.

Nobody talked about obstruction of justice. You cannot have obstruction of justice, when the president exercises his constitutional authority to pardon, his constitutional authority to fire the director of the FBI, or his constitutional authority to tell the director of the FBI who to prosecute, who not to prosecute. So let's get out of the weeds, and let's look at the big --

MIKE: So there it is. From one of the most respected legal minds in the country, who also happens to be a liberal. You cannot have obstruction of justice here. And what happened in no way was -- was anywhere near obstruction of justice. So how will Chuck Schumer -- how will Nancy Pelosi -- how will Maxine Waters -- how will all the hand-wringing Democrats deal with this? Well, you can bet they're going to keep hammering. They're going to keep hammering until they get something else, something else that will slow down the process.

Comey -- or, Dershowitz continues.

ALAN: That's what President Bush did. In the beginning of the investigation of Caspar Weinberger, which could have led back to the White House, to the first President Bush. President Bush on the eve of the trial pardoned Caspar Weinberger, pardoned six people. And special counsel Wash (phonetic) said this is outrageous. He's stopping the investigation.

There was also a discussion -- and I've been following, thanks to the crew here, the research crew here -- Keith has been digging up different quotes on this. Jamie Dupree, who is -- covers Congress for a couple different radio and TV outlets has been cherry-picking some of the most interesting moments from this hearing. And he said, Comey wrote memos about the Trump hearings and said, "Quote, I was honestly concerned that he would lie about the nature of our meeting." That's why he wrote it. So if he was actually nervous about it, we have to go back to the one question I would ask Comey. Why didn't you bring it up? Why did you wait till after you were fired? Why did this all happen only after you were fired?

The other statement that really -- really makes me crazy is Comey saying that the attorney general, Loretta Lynch, Bill Clinton meeting on the tarmac. That meeting that all of us realized was not about grandkids and golf. That any thinking sane person would say, no, they're not talking grandkids and golf for 45 minutes. Because even I, a golfer who obsesses about playing the game, knows that you will bore the tar out of people if you talk about golf for longer than five minutes. Even golfers get tired of it. We don't want to hear about it. We want to play. So sitting on the tarmac for 45 minutes, just when your wife Hillary happens to be under investigation. Oh, I don't know. And facing a possible breakdown in her dreams to become the president. And you've got the attorney general in front of you. Gee, do you think they were talking about grandkids and golf?

No. But Comey says the AG Lynch and Bill Clinton tarmac meeting was the reason he went public with the email investigation. Really? Was it because that meeting actually had something else going on and you couldn't let it just slide away? So you had to bring up the email investigation in order to maybe bring back some reality to the world?

This is amazing on so many levels. Very amazing.

THE GLENN BECK PODCAST

Ben Shapiro & Glenn Beck Reveal the TURNING POINT for the Media

The Legacy Media’s time is up and New Media outlets like BlazeTV and the Daily Wire are rising to take their place. Ben Shapiro joins Glenn Beck to make the case that he can pinpoint the exact day that Joe Biden killed the Legacy Media: his disastrous 2024 debate against Donald Trump. “In that moment, the Legacy Media died,” Ben says. “The entire American public was subjected to the reality that these people lie with an agenda. And you can’t put that genie back in the bottle.”

Does This Tape Prove LBJ Killed JFK?

The tape alleging that LBJ ordered JFK's assassination appears to be REAL. Glenn invited the tape's owner, Shane Stevens, to confirm that the digital recording he gave to Alex Jones back in January, 2025, matches the original tape. So, for the first time, he played the chilling confession from the original source live in the studio.

RADIO

Glenn’s URGENT Message as Trump Topples the Global Left’s Lies

President Trump has made it clear: the globalist “house of cards” is trembling under its own weight. But we have a choice: are we going to fear it, or are we going to face it?” Glenn argues that Donald Trump is facing it with a controlled fire, getting rid of all the underbrush and giving us a chance to rebuild and rethink how we live. “We cannot continue to rely on far-off enemies.” We CAN make things again – new things. We can stand on our own two feet. But in order to do that, we must reject the lies and embrace the truth, which many people who hate Donald Trump seem reluctant to do. Why, Glenn asks, do they still give Democratic politicians the benefit of the doubt when they lied to us about ESG, DEI, globalism, COVID’s origins, and so much more? And on top of that, they were “literally stealing from you” through USAID and NGOs?

Transcript

Below is a rush transcript that may contain errors

GLENN: So it has been a little frightening this week. And you're looking at things.
And, you know, Donald Trump might seem calloused to some.

Because he will just say, you know, hey. Stop freaking out. Stop freaking out.

And it's easy to say that, as a negotiator. If you're negotiating in a company. And you can say to your staff, behind closed doors. Listen, we are going to do some stuff.

But I'm negotiating. Don't freak out. Anybody freaks out. We will lose the negotiation.

Don't freak out. He's been trying to do that.

But he has to say it on a global stage. Where everybody is watching him.

So he's trying to say, don't freak out. I've got this.

I've got this.

And it's required us to have faith.

And, you know, that's hard to give to a politician. Any politician.

Especially if you didn't vote for that politician. If you don't like Donald Trump. You're not going to give him the benefit of the doubt.

You will think he's destroying the country.

And it's really interesting. Because those who didn't vote for Donald Trump, because they thought he would destroy the country, most likely voted for the last administration.

And it didn't matter that they were literally on the take from one of our enemies.

Literally making millions of dollars, taking money, to influence decisions, from China.

It didn't matter that they were lying. They were cheating. That they were literally stealing from you, now we know, through USAID.

Through all of these NGOs. They were literally stealing from you.

Let alone, lying to you!

Remember when I told you about The Great Reset? Something ESG.

DEI.

All these things that we now are very, very well aware of, and we know. They are absolutely true.

They were implemented by the same people who said they were conspiracy theories.

I mean, that's the one thing I can't get past is the people. How do you get past?

How do you hate Donald Trump so much, that you can still run to the people who have lied to you over and over again?

About things that do matter. You know, when Donald Trump said, I have the biggest -- I had the biggest crowd ever!

It doesn't matter. If he's telling the truth or lying.

Does that matter?

No. We're not. We're not. We're not. Trying to undermine capitalism and go to a global government through ESG and DEI and the World Economic Forum.

That lie matters. That one matters. That one will matter for generations.

That one matters to your children and your grandchildren.

But for some reason, some people will just continue to dismiss that.

I want to remind you, that while we're in this situation, with China. First of all, China is the source of COVID.

Did you see this week, what they came out with, on -- that Biden covered up something we reported on, almost, I mean, within a couple of months of COVID.

We said, you know, we've been doing our homework on this. And there was an event with the global army. And all of the armies around the world, that were kind of war gaming and getting together. And our troops were there too.

And it was all in Wuhan. And they came home, and they were sick.

Remember that? And we were like, that might have been the first kind of outbreak of this.

And everyone called us conspiracy. They just -- they just released the documents that show that Joe Biden that afternoon. It was try.

And they buried it.

So we're dealing with a country like China. Really, really bad. You know that, and I know that.

We are dependent on China now! And that can't happen.

Do you remember what COVID was like, when everybody was like, oh, you can't get that. You can't get that.

You can't get surgical masks, because they're all made in China.

How many times did we, in 2020, 2021, 2022 say, I've never seen this in the United States before.

Wait a minute. There's a shortage of, what?

Okay. We weren't used to that.

Don't forget that. Don't forget that.

Especially when it comes to things like medication and rare earth minerals.

You may not know exactly what rare earth minerals are. Or your friends might not know.

But rare earth minerals are what -- it's going to control the world!

You don't have access to rare earth minerals, you can't make batteries or chips.

Okay? Nothing! China is buying them up from all over the world.

And we have created this country, where we can't even mine our own rare earth minerals, and underneath some of our mountains, we have more rare earth minerals than every place in the world combined!

But our government has shut that off. Now, why?

Again, may I remind you of what we just came out of.

The Cloward and Piven strategy. Cloward and Piven were these two university professors, back in the '60s. And when I first brought them up, back in the early 2000s, everybody was like, that's crazy.

She's just a sweet old lazy lady.

She didn't mean any of that stuff.

Yes, she did. Yes, she did.

She was the one at the White House, with Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton. That did the motor voter law.

That was her. Why?

Get people, everybody who is registered for a license. Get them registered to vote.

The whole thing -- her whole plan with her husband, Cloward and Piven, the whole thing was to collapse America. Economically.

Overwhelm the system, and collapse it economically.

We're dealing with that reality.

Okay?

Whether it's intentional or not.

We all know, we all know, you look back -- I look at this world, and you see, my gosh.

It's just a sprawling, chaotic system, that we've all been swept up in.

And it has strangely worked in many ways, until it doesn't work.

Because of his something like COVID.

And then all falls apart.

And you look at everything that we're doing. The endless wars.

The draining of our spirit.

And our resources. With these endless wars. Government spending like there's absolutely no tomorrow.

Printing money, until it feels like Monopoly cash. Globalism, that has left us leaning on our enemies, for things as basic as medicine and rare earth minerals.

Elites in our universities. And now running our schools. That are destroying our children, by teaching them to be victims.

And not teaching them how to empower themselves, by learning how to think!

Worst of all, the global governments. The World Economic Forum.

The WHO. The United Nations.

All of those things that have said to us, for years. No. We're not doing that. We're not doing that.

And now we know that they have been doing that. And with our help, from the elites in our own governments. And they have redesigned the world.

They have infiltrated a compliant press, that denies the truth.

They are continually defying common sense.

And they are defying the -- the will of the people. Openly.

Openly. Destroying our nations.

Destroying our history.

Our unity. Now arresting those who dare stand against them.

Whether it's the guy down the street on the school board or at the school board meeting. That is like, hey. You guys are all crooks. What are you doing to my kids?

Those who are protesting rape gangs in England.

Actual leaders running for higher office against the machine in France and Romania.

They tried to do it here.

This is all a house of cards.

And it's trembling under its own weight. And deep down. Every single one of us know it.

One way or another.

We all know it. Whether you're in denial or not, that's up to you. Even those on the left, the ones who have been loudest about keeping it going, all along. The ones who are now protesting and burning Tesla. Unless you're a useful idiot. Unless you're someone who is like, yeah. Our side is always right.

I will burn down a Tesla factory.

Unless you're just a useful idiot, you know, this is not about what's right and wrong.

This is about keeping the decline of this nation, and the entire West, on that path.

Because the elites, some of those that are tied to the last president, and his circle. Pushed this idea, of the Great Reset.

Which is a managed decline.

They see the cracks, just as much as I do. They're trying to control the fall, so they can control our future.

They know there's too much money to be lost. So let's get together with all the big banks. And the big corporations.

And finding out more and more. Our CIA. And everybody else.

And we will manage this collapse, keep the people down. Keep the people quiet. And then we will control everything, and we will reset. That's -- that's not -- God didn't give you the right to do that! God didn't give anybody for anybody to do that to a whole population of people!

So this is what we've been fighting against. And now Donald Trump is standing up and saying, that is so deep and metastasized. To save it, we have to turn this thing 180 -- this is the world's largest aircraft carrier, ever in the imagined nation of mankind. It's like an imperial stormtrooper ship. You know, of a -- of a -- you know, of an aircraft carrier.

Practically half a continent. And you have to turn that thing around!

So let me talk to you about fear.

Just that, should scare the hell out of all of you. Every single one of us, it should scare our children and our children's children. It should scare everybody within the sound of my voice. Because you know it's true!

There is trouble, whether it's intended or not, this doesn't work anymore!

Okay?

And basis we got off common sense. And common values.

Now the question is: Are you going to fear it, or are you going to face it?

And that's really what this election, I think was about. At least for me!

I see one guy who is willing to stand up and say the truth, and then actually follow through with action.

I don't see politicians follow through with action. He is actually not afraid of doing it! I'm not afraid of the truth.

You shouldn't be afraid of the truth. The truth will set us all free!

It's scarier to pretend it's not there!

Yeah. It's going to be tough. It's going to be really tough. We have some hard times ahead of us. There's no sugarcoating.

Nobody should sugarcoat that.

But it's, what is the goal at the end?

Is it for the elites to control everything?

Or is it to give you power?

Because both of them are risky. Both of them could end in violent revolution.

Both of them could fail.

But I know which side I want to win. I want the side that says, hey. These values are worth fighting for, and trying to save.

And it might be our World War II. It might be our Great Depression.

It might be our Civil War. But I would rather take that on, then pass it on to my children. Because I would have my children to have the opportunity sooner rather than later to be free.

The system has been running on fumes. And when it finally sputters out, we're going to feel the jolt, one way or another.

What's been happening this week, is dedicated people, who know what's going on. That says, okay.

I don't want the pain.

But I would rather take it on my shoulders now, than pass it on my kids.

Because we might be able to save it now, if we're honest about what we're facing.

Let me carry the load. Let me mess with the mess that we've made. So they don't have to!

Because a controlled fire is good!

Forest fires are good too, in the end. Long run. But a controlled fire is good.

It gets rid of all the underbrush. And it actually replenishes the soil, so something good could grow. And some controlled burns are going to happen. We have a chance here to rebuild, to rethink how we live.

We cannot continue to rely on far off enemies. We have to start looking closer to home. To our own soil.

To our own hands. To our own people.

We can make things again.

Not the things we made in the past.

We're never going back to those days.

Something new and better is on the horizon.

But we can grow things.

We can stand on our own 2 feet. It's time to say, you're 25 years old. You're not a kid. Adolescence now. Adolescence now lasts until you're 25!

In George Washington's time, you were an adult when you were 13!

Are we getting better or weaker? This is not going to be easy. But what is the -- what's at the end, will either be completely bogus, or real again.

And somewhere inside of me, I know we're not done yet.

World has been through collapse before, empires fall, systems crumble.

But the ones who make it, are the ones who dust themselves off.

So I am for one, willing to take the hit.

I am willing to grit my teeth. Because I believe in what's on the other side.

And I know it's -- you can say it's easy for you to say, Glenn. But I only succeed when you succeed.

I get paid a salary because you have the money to buy things that we advertise. So if you don't succeed, I don't succeed.

I lose everything too. I just want to encourage you to pray on this, this weekend.

And -- and find the strength to at least face the truth. And turn the page.

Because it's not just about survival.

It's a new start!

THE GLENN BECK PODCAST

Why Trump Must ANNIHILATE Mexico’s Cartels Like ISIS | The Glenn Beck Podcast | Ep 253

Ravaged by political corruption, decades of mass murder, unfettered human trafficking, and a spiraling fentanyl crisis, Mexico is a “fragile narco-state,” says Brandon Darby, co-founder of Breitbart’s Border and Cartel Chronicles. While Mexican media and journalists are silenced by fear of cartel retribution, Darby has spent years exposing atrocities like the mass graves found miles from our southern border, giving a voice to a nation ignored and terrorized into silence. Darby criticizes U.S. diplomatic efforts focused on reforming Mexico’s justice system and depicts a U.S.-Mexico border rife with lawlessness and violence, urging Trump to enact border policies that “treat the cartels like we treat al-Qaeda” and not to forget that “China is courting Mexico.”

Glenn's Show Prep

Dershowitz: Get Out of the Weeds, No Obstruction of Justice With Comey

Ben Shapiro & Glenn Beck Reveal the TURNING POINT for the Media

Does This Tape Prove LBJ Killed JFK?

Glenn’s URGENT Message as Trump Topples the Global Left’s Lies

Transcript

Why Trump Must ANNIHILATE Mexico’s Cartels Like ISIS | The Glenn Beck Podcast | Ep 253