As establishment Democrats grow wary of a Sen. Bernie Sanders (I., Vt.) nomination, MSNBC anchor Chris Matthews raised the possibility of Rep. Adam Schiff (D., Calif.) emerging as the Democratic nominee during a contested convention.

"How about Adam Schiff?" Matthews asked during a discussion about the primary nomination. "Could they all agree let’s give it to Schiff?"

Schiff, chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, has gained notoriety for leading the Democratic impeachment of President Donald Trump. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.) made Schiff the lead impeachment manager for the Senate trial, which is expected to end with Trump's acquittal Wednesday.

Matthews raised the possibility of Schiff's nomination after asking his panel whether anyone could receive the nomination if it's not decided by the time of the Democratic National Convention this July. He was told the nomination "could go to anyone," whether they ran in the primary or not.

Matthews made the comment during a discussion on whether former New York mayor Michael Bloomberg could emerge as an acceptable alternative to Sanders, who has gained momentum in the early primary states.

"Bernie is a tough fighter. He doesn't look like a guy who is going to quit and give his marbles to somebody else," Matthews said.

Former Democratic congressman Steve Israel agreed, telling Matthews, "We may be going to Milwaukee without a clearly established nominee."