“House Democrats call for President Trump’s impeachment. We MUST protect our president. DEFEND THE PRESIDENT," the email reads. | AP Photo GOP campaign arm raises money off possible Trump impeachment

On the day after President Donald Trump fired FBI Director Jim Comey, the House Republican campaign arm released a fundraising appeal raising the specter of a Democratic-led impeachment.

“Calls For Impeachment Grow Louder,” reads the subject line of the email appeal, which was sent by the National Republican Congressional Committee.


“BREAKING,” blares the top of the email. “House Democrats call for President Trump’s impeachment. We MUST protect our president. DEFEND THE PRESIDENT.”

“Fellow Conservative — Democrats want President Trump impeached — including the DNC Deputy Chair!” it adds. “If Democrats win the House their #1 priority would be to impeach our president. We must protect the House at ALL costs, Fellow Conservative.”

After making a request for donations, the email signs off with: “Thanks, Trump Majority HQ.”

It's not unusual for parties to send out fundraising appeals that invoke political extremes to grab the attention of grass-roots donors.

But the email left some senior Republican strategists scratching their heads, particularly at such a vulnerable time for the besieged White House.

“It is unconscionable that the House committee" would use calls for impeachment to raise money, said one party operative.

Neither the NRCC nor the White House would say whether the email had been planned, or whether the committee had given the administration a heads up before it was sent.

The email was apparently referring to Minnesota Rep. Keith Ellison, the Democratic National Committee’s deputy chairman, who has previously floated the idea of impeaching Trump. Following Comey’s dismissal, Ellison said the country was facing a “constitutional crisis.”

