Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani said President Trump is ‘adamant’ he wants to meet with special counsel Robert Mueller – even as is convinced the Russia probe ‘rigged’ against him.
‘He is adamant in wanting to do it,’ Giuliani said, even as he called the inquiry ‘rigged.’
‘We are more convinced as we see it that this is a rigged investigation. Now we have this whole new “spygate” thing thrown on top of it, on top of already legitimate questions,’ he said, using Trump’s slang for the FBI’s use of a confidential informant.
He also acknowledged his own role, which has included an onslaught of media appearances bashing the Russia probe – and where Mueller has either declined to respond or is prohibited from doing so – is designed to color public opinion against it.
Rudy Giuliani said President Trump is ‘adamant’ he wants to meet with special counsel Robert Mueller
‘It is for public opinion,” he told host Dana Bash on CNN’s ‘State of the Union.’
“Because eventually the decision here is going to be impeach, not impeach,’ he said, raising a possible course of action should Democrats take the House.
‘Members of Congress, Democrats and Republicans, are going to be informed a lot by their constituents. So our jury – as it should be – is the American people,’ Giuliani continued.
‘And the American people are, Republicans largely, many independents, even some Democrats now question the legitimacy of it. Democrats I would suggest for their own self interest, this is not a good issue to go into the congressional elections,’ he added.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi has urged Democratic colleagues not to stress impeachment before the elections this year.
He also defended the president’s right to be briefed on elements of a probe about which he is a subject.
Even as Giuliani told CNN Trump was adamant about talking to Mueller, he told ‘Fox News Sunday’ how his entire legal team was counseling against it.
‘When you look at the backdrop of this rigged investigation, when you look at how they treated [former campaign chair Paul] Manafort, how they spun off into [Trump lawyer Michael] Cohen. How they’re chasing things in the Middle East. The reality is, we are not going to sit him down if this is a trap for perjury. We’re convinced of that. And if they don’t show us these documents, we’re just going to have to say no,’ Giuliani said.
He was referencing documents about the use of and FBI informant that Trump and congressional Republicans are demanding be made available.