Ancient Greece had its Sophists: clever, brilliant orators who could convincingly argue either side of a litigious issue. Fast forward 2,400 years, and we have Alan Dershowitz, who raises sophistry to a new level, e.g. Clinton, no proof of crime required to impeach — Trump, proof of crime required to impeach.

Granted, this is an oversimplification of the current political foofaraw over the impeachment battle. But this all played out in the tedious process of continuous congressional hearings, speechifying by Trump water-carriers like Dershowitz and his sanctimonious soul brother, Ken Starr.

However, the pusillanimous hand-wringers worried that their champion will be impeached can rest easy. Trump will be around till the next election. Mitch McConnell and the Senate will see to that.

The issue that underlies it all is the dispute between Trump supporters and those who maintain he is the most supremely unfit person ever to sit in the Oval Office. The Trumpistas weep crocodile tears over the just criticism of the president, like the writer of the letter “Impeachment dangerous” (Jan. 23, TribLIVE), but overlook his narcissism, crudity, bullying and other evidence of his incompetence.

They even urge a further study of Dershowitz, Starr et al. who support their position. But this would reveal some unsavory information. For example, Dershowitz’s regular efforts to grandstand in high-profile, tabloid-friendly legal cases like the O.J. Simpson trial and the Jeffrey Epstein matter, and his sophistic justification for torture, or Starr’s withering interrogation of Monica Lewinsky during the Clinton era. Peculiar guys!

Robert Jedrzejewski

Tarentum

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