Dershowitz defends Ghislaine Maxwell by citing friendship with Clintons, Twitter scoffs

Alan Dershowitz has penned a staunch defence of Ghislaine Maxwell following her arrest by the FBI. But his touting of her friendship with the Clintons as evidence of her character has left many incredulously scoffing.

The famous lawyer penned an op-ed for The Spectator in which he sought to set out his own relationship with Jeffrey Epstein’s alleged madam and argue that she must be presumed innocent.

Dershowitz, who has himself faced accusations of involvement in Epstein’s sex ring, explains that he was first introduced to the British socialite by a member of the Rothschild family and when he subsequently met her, on “several occasions”, she was in the presence of esteemed people such as Nobel Prize winners, university presidents and even Bill and Hillary Clinton.

The irony of citing the Clintons as character references for a person accused of misconduct relating to sex didn’t go unnoticed and many took to Twitter to point this out. 

Former British ambassador Craig Murray wrote: “Alan Dershowitz argues that Ghislaine Maxwell could not possibly be a predatory sexual pervert because her friends were people like.... Bill Clinton. Ahem.”

While another sardonic commenter added: “Yes of course. Those in positions of power and wealth never commit any crimes.”

Dershowitz’s article even prompted a response from Juanita Broaddrick, a former Bill Clinton volunteer who claims the politician raped her in a hotel room in the 1970s. “Weird... Why exactly did Dershowitz write this?” Broaddrick asked. 

The piece appears to have backfired on Dershowitz as, far from explaining away his connection to Maxwell and Epstein, it sparked a slew of tweets about the subject. The reaction even saw his name to climb into the Twitter trending charts in the United States.

Maxwell appeared in court on Thursday accused of helping pedophile Epstein “identify, befriend and groom” multiple girls, including one as young as 14. The 58-year-old denies any wrongdoing and, if convicted, faces up to 35 years in prison.

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