The conversation quickly got heated on CNN Monday night when conservative pundit Jeffrey Lord cited a recent column by LawNewz.com‘s conservative writer Robert Barnes.
The opinion, submitted by Barnes who is a constitutional law and criminal defense attorney, was titled, If Trump Jr. is Guilty, So is Every Democrat Who Takes Information From ‘Dreamers.’ Barnes, using what he admits is an absurd comparison, takes issue with the logic employed by some legal experts who contend that Trump Jr. violated election law by soliciting information from a Russian attorney.
“If these Trump bashing lawyers were right, they have just allowed the mass indictment and incarceration of most politically active Dreamers, as well as all the political groups that solicit their campaign involvement, even if merely for information,” Barnes wrote in his column.
Lord tried to make the comparison point on AC360 but he was quickly cut off.
“Jeffrey that is offensive, you need to stop, that’s ridiculous and offensive, that is asinine,”said Christine Quinn, a Democrat and former Speaker of the New York City Council. Quinn then accused Barnes of being affiliated with Trump (he is not, though he is a frequent supporter in his columns). The conversation pretty much dissolved from there. You can watch the CNN showdown above.
Many prominent legal experts believe that even though Trump Jr. never obtained the information on Clinton from the Russian attorney, Trump Jr. was soliciting this “dirt” from a foreign national, which is a violation of election law. 52 U.S.C. 30121(a)(2)prohibits any person from soliciting a contribution or donation or a “thing of value” from a foreign national. Some experts contend that the “thing of value” was the information he hoped to get. Clearly both Barnes and Lord disagree.