Famous lawyer Alan Dershowitz called Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell’s lawsuit against Donald Trump a “political feat” with “dizzying implications”.
Speaking for Newsmax in a video shared on Twitter on Saturday, Dershowitz likened the process to “suing God for writing the Bible”.
“It is certainly a political ploy, the implications of which are staggering. It means that you can sue Black Lives Matter for any violence that has occurred on your platform,” he said.
“I think the final implication is that you can sue God for writing the Bible, because the Bible led to crusades and other violence. And you could sue the Imam for giving speeches in churches, mosques and synagogues,” he added.
Dershowitz’s comments came after Swalwell, a California congressman, filed a lawsuit on Friday against Trump, Donald Trump Jr., Rudy Giuliani and Congressman Mo Brooks (R-AL) for inciting the 6 riot January at the United States Capitol.
The civil suit was filed in federal court in Washington, DC, and accused Trump and his allies of “inciting an attack on the Capitol that terrified lawmakers and prevented us from doing our job of certifying the votes of the American people”.
In the process, Swalwell alleges that Trump, Trump Jr., Giuliani and Brooks provoked the violent siege with their repeated allegations of electoral fraud, their incentive for supporters to come to DC on January 6 and through their speeches that day.
“Trump directly incited the violence in the Capitol that followed and then watched with approval as the building was invaded,” the suit said. “The horrible events of January 6 were a direct and predictable consequence of the Defendants’ illegal actions. As such, the Defendants are responsible for the injuries and destruction that followed.”
The January 6 violence – which left five dead and several others injured – eventually led to the impeachment of Trump by the House of Representatives. Swalwell was one of the House’s impeachment managers who argued against the former president.
But Trump was finally acquitted by the Senate on February 13, with seven Republicans joining the Democrats in the vote to condemn him.
Swalwell’s lawsuit comes after a similar motion was filed last month by Democratic Representative Bennie Thompson, claiming that Trump incited the attack in violation of the Ku Klux Klan Act, a Reconstruction-era law that prohibits interference with the constitutional duties of the Congress.
Lior Mizrahi / Getty Images
In the interview with Newsmax, Dershowitz said that Swalwell’s lawsuit was just a “political theater” that would not undergo a resignation motion.
“This process will be rejected on the basis of the First Amendment, it should be nothing more than a motion to reject it. It’s just political theater, but it puts our First Amendment in danger of just having the case open, ”he said.
In response to the lawsuit, Trump adviser Jason Miller said Swalwell “had no credibility” and was attacking Trump with “yet another witch hunt”, according to the Associated Press.
Likewise, a comment by Brooks shared with Newsweek on Friday he called the Swalwell lawsuit “a maneuver without merit”.
“Under no circumstances will Swalwell, or any other socialist, prevent me from fighting for America,” said Brooks.
Newsweek contacted Trump and Swalwell for further comments, but there was no response in time for publication.