Donald Trump has said he would “head to the US Supreme Court“ if Democrats in Congress launched impeachment proceedings against him.

He wrote: “The Mueller Report, despite being written by Angry Democrats and Trump Haters, and with unlimited money behind it ($35,000,000), didn’t lay a glove on me. I DID NOTHING WRONG. If the partisan Dems ever tried to Impeach, I would first head to the US Supreme Court.”

In a second tweet, Mr Trump added that there are "no ‘High Crimes and Misdemeanors,’ there are no Crimes by me at all... We waited for Mueller and WON, so now the Dems look to Congress as last hope!”

Mr Trump likely sees the Supreme Court as more favourable territory for him, given that he has nominated two conservative judges during his term in the White House that have been confirmed onto the court. First there was Neil Gorsuch and then last year came Brett Kavanaugh. That helped create a right-wing majority on the court.

Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Show all 23 1 /23 Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Joe Biden The former vice president - poised to be a frontrunner - has announced his run. He recently faced scrutiny for inappropriate touching of women, but was thought to deal with the criticism well AFP/Getty Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Bernie Sanders The 2016 runner-up has announced that he will be running again in 2020 Getty Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Hillary Clinton The 2016 Democratic presidential candidate and former Secretary of State says she is “still considering” whether she will run again. Getty Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Pete Buttigieg The Indiana mayor and war veteran will be running for president. If elected, he would be the first openly LGBT+ president in American history. Getty Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Kamala Harris The former California attorney general will be running for president in 2020. Introduced to the national stage during Jeff Sessions’ testimony, she has endorsed Medicare-for-all and proposed a major tax-credit for the middle class. AP Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Elizabeth Warren The Massachusetts Senator has formally launched her bid for president in 2020. A progressive Democrat, she is a major supporter of regulating Wall Street. AP Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Beto O’Rourke The former Texas congressman told Oprah Winfrey that he “has been thinking about running for presidency”, but stopped short of formally announcing his bid to run in 2020. AFP/Getty Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Wayne Messam Mayor of the city of Miramar in the Miami metropolitan area, Wayne Messam has announced his bid. He intends to run on a progressive platform against the "broken" federal government. He favours gun regulations and was a signatory to a letter from some 400 mayors condemning President Trump's withdrawal from the Paris Climate Accord. Vice News Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Kirsten Gillibrand The New York Senator formally announced her presidential bid in January, saying that “healthcare should be a right, not a privilege.” Getty Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Cory Booker The New Jersey Senator has announced that he will be running for the presidency in 2020. If he secures the nomination he said finding a female vice president would be a priority. Getty Who could be running against Trump in 2020? John Delaney The Maryland congressman was the first to launch his bid for presidency, making the announcement in 2017. AP Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Julian Castro The former San Antonio mayor announced his candidacy in January and said that his running has a “special meaning” for the Latino community in the US. Getty Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Tulsi Gabbard The Hawaii congresswoman announced her candidacy in January, but is likely to face tough questions on her past comments on LGBT+ rights and her stance on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Getty Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Andrew Yang The entrepreneur has announced his presidential candidacy, and has pledged that he would introduce a universal basic income of $1,000 a month to every American over the age of 18. AFP/Getty Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Marianne Williamson The author and spiritual advisor has announced her intention to run for president. She had previously run for congress as an independent in 2014 but was unsuccessful. Getty Who could be running against Trump in 2020? John Kerry The former secretary of state has said he is still thinking about whether to run. Getty Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Michael Bloomberg The entrepreneur and former New York mayor– with a net worth of around $50bn – has said he will decide by the end of February whether to seek the presidency. AFP Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Howard Schultz Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz has not yet ruled out running for president in 2020, despite criticism that his bid could help re-elect Mr Trump by dividing the Democrat vote. AP Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Eric Holder The former attorney general has said he will decide in “the next month or so” whether to run as a 2020 presidential candidate. AP Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Eric Swalwell The California congressman said he is “ready to do this” and will decide before April whether to run. MSNBC Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Terry McAuliffe The former Virginia governor, who worked to elect Democratic governors during 2018 midterms, said there was a “50 per cent” chance he would run. AP Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Sherrod Brown The Ohio senator is still undecided about whether to run for president in 2020. Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Mitch Landrieu The former New Orleans mayor said he doesn’t think he will run for president, but “never say never”. AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin

However, while Mr Trump has shown some knowledge of impeachment procedure, it is debatable that the Supreme Court could step in on what would be a Congressional matter.

First, it is the House of Representatives that can begin the push for removal of the president, and a number of Democrats have previously tabled articles of impeachment. While no articles have yet been approved by a vote in the House, the Senate would take over if any were successful.

The Senate would then hold an impeachment hearing, presided over by the chief justice of the Supreme Court. This acts as a trial, with the House acting as prosecutor. It is the Senate that holds the power however, with members able to ignore the advice of the chief justice during a final vote on impeachment.

Support free-thinking journalism and attend Independent events

Article 2 of the US Constitution states that officials such as the president can only be impeached over “treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanours” – with Mr Trump tweeting that this does not apply to him. However, historical context suggests that those writing the constitution believed that this also encompassed political misconduct, which could include actions such as obstruction of justice.

Impeachment, or removal from office, is also the only action taken by Congress and does not lead to criminal consequences, leaving no room for the Supreme Court to rule. The Constitution lays the “sole power” of impeachment before the House of Representatives and the Senate.

In a 1993 case Nixon v the United States, relating to the impeachment of a federal judge Walter Nixon in Mississippi, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously that the use of the word "sole" in the constitution means that the judiciary should not intervene and could not review impeachment decisions.

Legal scholar and frequent Fox News contributor Alan Dershowitz wrote in his 2018 book​ The Case Against Impeaching Trump that the Supreme Court could review impeachment if Mr Trump had been impeached over collusion – saying it is not a crime. But the issue of obstruction of justice is a different matter.

In his report, which was released in a redacted form last week, special counsel Robert Mueller laid out 11 instances where Mr Trump may have obstructed justice. The report did not pass judgement on the legality of such actions, or exonerate the president. Attorney General William Barr then declined to pursue charges in the wake of the Mueller report and any further action now lies with Congress.

Democrats, who control the House, remain divided over the issue of impeachment. Mr Trump and his White House are also seeking to fight any new congressional oversight on the issues raised by the Mueller report.