On Tuesday (April 21), The Wall Street Journal published an op-ed from Alan Dershowitz, in which he declared that he would be registering as a Republican for the first time in his life.
In the op-ed, Dershowitz claims that the Democratic Party has become too anti-Israel, writing: “I believe that the Democratic Party’s hostility to Israel represents a deeper and more dangerous shift away from the center and toward a radical approach that is bad for America and the free world.”
The Harvard Law School Professor Emeritus also claimed that the Republicans “have their own antisemitic fringe, but for now it remains a fringe.” He also said that he differs with them on issues such as the separation of church and state, immigration, healthcare, taxes and abortion, but will do his best to uphold the GOP going forward.
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The 87-year-old has been under fire for his positions which have aided President Donald Trump and his MAGA base. He has stated that the 22nd Amendment, which prohibits presidents from seeking a third term, is “ambiguous” in a book released last year. He also represented Trump during his first term against impeachment.
Dershowitz was mocked shortly after the column was published on social media. In a post on X, formerly Twitter, user Brian Tashman noted that it wasn’t the first time that he left the Democratic Party.
Even right-wingers viewed Dershowitz’s declaration with scorn. Conservative activist Christopher Rufo wrote in another post on X that Dershowitz was one more “entry in “the Right is a dumping ground for failed celebrities and MeToo cases.”
Others dogged Dershowitz for being the former lawyer representing convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein. He served as part of the legal team that helped negotiate the infamous non-prosecution agreement he had in Florida in 2007, and represented him in several civil suits. The relationship had soured by 2018, according to comments by Epstein which were published by Republicans on the House Oversight Committee last November.
