Harvard Professor Emeritus and vocal Donald Trump defender Alan Dershowitz appeared on Fox News tonight to downplay the Paul Manafort conviction and Michael Cohen plea, saying that “it is not nearly as deadly, lethal as some have portrayed it as being.”

Dershowitz, who was speaking to Fox News host Tucker Carlson when he made the remarks, did admit that today’s court proceedings are “the beginning of a story that will unravel over time” and that the president “perhaps” violated “election laws,” but he spent the rest of the interview defending Trump amid the scandal.

“Volation of election laws are regarded as kind of jaywalking in the realm of things about elections,” Dershowitz said. “Every administration violates the election laws, every candidate violates the election laws when they run for president.”

He continued:

“Here, they’re trying to elevate this into an impeachable offense or a felony against the president. Look, they may name the president as an un-indicted co-conspirator… Naming someone as an un-indicted co-conspirator is very unfair because has has no opportunity to defend himself or herself.”

Dershowitz’s comments come just hours after Manafort was convicted for numerous bank and tax law violations, while Cohen pleaded guilty to similar crimes and admitted that Trump directed the hush money payment given to women alleging they had affairs with the candidate.

Watch above, via Fox News.

[image via screengrab]

Follow the author on Twitter (@calebecarma).

Have a tip we should know? [email protected]