When Pelosi had begun counting votes in late September, the president had instructed his staff to give the impression that we were unfazed by the impeachment inquiry. From members and senior staff, I heard that the president was uneasy about the optics of an impeachment as we neared the election year and worried how it might impact his reputation and legacy. It was with those considerations in mind that he continued to rally his base with his signature us-versus-them rhetoric.
