Trump may turn to Giuliani again to defend against impeachment

US President Donald Trump might turn to his personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani to defend him against possible impeachment over his role in the violence in the US Capitol on Wednesday, according to two people familiar with the matter.

Representative Ted Lieu said Saturday that House Democrats will introduce legislation on Monday calling for Vice President Mike Pence and Trump's Cabinet to invoke the 25th Amendment and remove Trump from office.

They accuse the incumbent of engaging “in high Crimes and Misdemeanors by willfully inciting violence against the Government of the United States”.

US House Democrats to introduce Trump impeachment article on Monday

US House Democrats will introduce legislation on Monday calling for the impeachment of outgoing President Donald Trump.

On Wednesday, armed protesters broke into the US Capitol, forcing the chamber to halt the ongoing vote to certify President-elect Joe Biden’s election win. After two months of refusal to accept his defeat in the November 3 election, Trump sparked the violence, calling on his supporters to “fight like hell.”

Now, the two sources told Reuters that Trump might get help from Giuliani, who has been unsuccessfully spearheading Trump’s fight over election fraud claims through a flurry of lawsuits.

According to one of the sources, who is an outside adviser to the White House, Giuliani is expected to play a lead role in any impeachment effort.

The other source familiar with the situation said he might provide the kind of representation the president wants.

This comes as the president’s choice of lawyers to defend him may be limited given the fact that he had difficulty attracting top lawyers dating back to former Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into the alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election.

And now this is even harder due to the widespread condemnation of the violence at the Capitol that might discourage other leading lawyers from signing up.

White House counsel Pat Cipollone, who helped lead the defense team during an impeachment trial last year, considered resigning last week after the siege at the Capitol, according to a source.

Longtime personal lawyers for Trump such as Jay Sekulow are also unlikely to defend him, people familiar with the matter said.

Alan Dershowitz, the Harvard Law professor emeritus, said Friday that he would be honored to help, if asked, but said on Sunday he had not made a decision.

On Sunday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said that Democrats will proceed this week with impeaching the president unless Pence invokes the 25th Amendment.

In a letter to her members, Pelosi made clear that if Pence fails to do so, Democrats will immediately move to force Trump from office.

“In protecting our Constitution and our Democracy, we will act with urgency, because this President represents an imminent threat to both,” she said in the letter laying out next steps.

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