Trump attorney Alan Dershowitz, responding to a question from Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) about whether it matters if there was a quid pro quo, argued that it didn't if the president believed he was acting in the nation's interest.
And, Dershowitz said, Trump believes that him staying president is in the public's interest.
Every public official, Dershowitz said, "believes that his election is in the public interest. 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."
Dershowitz said it shouldn't be impeachable for a president to think, "I'm a great president; I think I'm the greatest president there ever was; if I'm not elected, the national interest will suffer greatly," and act accordingly.
Dershowitz represents the fundamental belief of the Republican party - campaign finance violations, gerrymandering, blatant lies, voter suppression, election interference, and lame duck fuckery can't be wrong, because Democrats do not deserve representation.