Impeachment proceedings in the House would give President Donald Trump a political boost ahead of the 2020 election and paint him as a "victim" of Democratic overreach, his lawyer Rudy Giuliani says.
In a phone interview with the New York Daily News, the former New York mayor said he hoped Congress didn't launch impeachment hearings in response to Robert Mueller's report finally becoming public.
But he contended the president would ultimately benefit if it happens.
"They can do it if they want to," Giuliani said of Democrats.
"Would it politically be the best thing that could happen to the president? Absolutely."
Echoing Trump's talking points, Giuliani said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is aware of the risks of impeaching the president.
"She's worried about it because it's going to make the president look like a victim," Giuliani said. "If they start an impeachment, the American people will quickly see it's a political witch hunt and it would make the president a victim."
Giuliani's remarks came hours before Pelos was expected to hold a conference call with House Democrats on Mueller's report and the possibility of impeachment.
A growing number of Democrats have entertained impeachment as a serious option in light of Mueller's refusal to clear Trump of obstructing the investigation into his 2016 campaign's ties to Russia.
In his report released on Thursday, Mueller rather suggested Congress consider taking action against the president as it relates to obstruction - a punt that some Democrats interpreted as an impeachment recommendation.
But Democratic leadership, including House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer have cautioned against trying to remove Trump from office, arguing it could backfire since the GOP-controlled Senate is all but certain to vote down any articles of impeachment passed by the House.
Giuliani said Hoyer is right and contended a Trump impeachment would hurt congressional Democrats as well as whoever ends up challenging Trump in 2020.
Giuliani acknowledged that the Mueller report wasn't a very flattering portrait of Trump, who's depicted as a serial liar who repeatedly tried to undermine the investigations targeting his campaign.
But, reiterating comments he made on cable news shows the night before, Giuliani said it wasn't a crime for the Trump campaign to accept Russian help ahead of the 2016 election.
Australian Associated Press
