Rep. Justin Amash’s (R-Mich.) recent comments that special counsel Robert Mueller‘s report showed President Trump committed impeachable offenses is unlikely to have a major impact on Republicans, pollster Mallory Newall said Monday.
“If it was a rank-and-file Republican, maybe,” Newall, who is research director at Ipsos Public Affairs, told host Jamal Simmons on Hill.TV’s “What America’s Thinking.”
“But again, Justin Amash has sort of been known particularly [by] those in his home district, those who know him well, as somebody that kind of lives outside of the partisan lines sometimes, and he’s not afraid to cross the aisle in the name of being a libertarian or being a contrary voice,” she said.
Newall added that if someone like Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) or Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) made similar remarks “maybe it would be different.”
Amash broke with members of his own party on Saturday when he tweeted that Mueller’s report “reveals that President Trump engaged in specific actions and a pattern of behavior that meet the threshold for impeachment.”
Republicans like House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (Calif.) were quick to slam Amash’s remarks.
“What he wants is attention in this process. He’s not a criminal attorney. He’s never met Mueller. He’s never met [Attorney General William] Barr. And now he’s coming forward with this?” McCarthy told Fox News on Sunday.
“This is exactly what you would expect from Justin. He never supported the president. And I think he’s just looking for attention,” McCarthy added.
— Julia Manchester
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