Fast forward to 2020, the attorneys for president Donald Trump appear to be resurrecting that line of thinking.

Responding to a question from Texas senator Ted Cruz, Trump lawyer Alan Dershowitz said there is nothing wrong with a president seeking foreign help for his reelection.

His reasoning? Well, the president is above the law, sort of. He said if the president thinks his reelection is in the best interest of the country, then he can rightfully do anything to get reelected.

Huh?

“If a president does something which he believes will help him get elected in the public interest, that cannot be the kind of quid pro quo that results in impeachment. Every public official I know believes that his election is in the public interest,” Dershowitz said.

Constitutional scholars were quick to condemn that line of reasoning, arguing that means presidents are free to break any laws as long as they believe that by breaking the laws they are acting in the national interest.

Dean of the University of California, Berkeley, law school Erwin Chemerinsky said he thought Dershowitz’s argument was “absurd and outrageous.”

“It means that a president could break any law or abuse any power and say that it was for the public interest because the public interest would be served by his or her election,” he said.

Meanwhile Sanford Levinson, a University of Texas law professor, said that line of argument was “on its face, preposterous.”

He said that while officials “make a variety of deals that they would prefer not to in behalf of the good cause…we rely on a certain moral compass that will stop at, say, outright bribery” and “suggesting assassinations.”

President Trump’s senate trial continues.

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The former Los Angeles Lakers star was flying from his home when the accident happened. The helicopter was said to have crashed into a hillside in Calabasas, California.

His daughter Gianna Maria Onore Bryant, 13, also died in the crash along with her friend and her friend’s family.

His death has been felt the world over.

From presidents Donald Trump to Barack Obama and Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu, world leaders mourned the passing of the NBA great.

Trump tweeted that Kobe “despite being one of the truly great basketball players of all time, was just getting started in life. He loved his family so much, and had such strong passion for the future. The loss of his beautiful daughter, Gianna, makes this moment even more devastating….”

Former president Obama said Kobe was a legend.

“Kobe was a legend on the court and just getting started in what would have been just as meaningful a second act. To lose Gianna is even more heartbreaking to us as parents. Michelle and I send love and prayers to Vanessa and the entire Bryant family on an unthinkable day,” he wrote on Twitter.

Even the Chinese state media posted tributes to the basketball star, writing that Kobe “evoked the love for basketball” amongst the Chinese youth.

“From primary school to university, he accompanied the youth of countless people, and evoked the love for basketball among many young Chinese people,” the People’s Daily, the mouthpiece of China’s ruling Communist Party posted online.

Japanese fans also mourned Kobe with a few reminding the world that the NBA legend was named after the city of Kobe.

“I’ve been always proud that I’m from Kobe because Kobe Bryant was named after my city. I’m totally heartbroken. RIP to a legend from Japan,” said Twitter user Fugu.

The post Kobe, Daughter Die in Helicopter Crash, World Mourns appeared first on The Liberal Advocate.