(CNN) Rep. Justin Amash said his Republican colleagues are caught in an untenable position trying to defend President Donald Trump as the controversy surrounding his dealings with Ukraine continues to grow.

Asked by CNN's Erin Burnett on Monday night whether those around the President were essentially forced to lie in order to defend Trump, Amash replied, "Yeah, and it's a shame." Amash left the Republican Party this past summer and became an independent after he became the sole GOP lawmaker to publicly argue that Trump had engaged in impeachable conduct

"I think they know better and I think, deep down, they wish they weren't, you know, trapped in this position," Amash said on CNN's "Erin Burnett OutFront."

"And I hear that from my colleagues on the House floor. I hear them talk about how they wish they weren't doing this."

He linked that dynamic to many of the recent retirements in Congress, describing them as "people who are just trying to ride out this President, and they might think of coming back into public office later on, once this President is gone."