Opponents of impeaching President Trump include Sean Hannity, Kellyanne Conway … and James B. Comey.

The unlikeliest opponent among the three — the former FBI director whom Mr. Trump fired and repeatedly denounced — explained his opposition this week in an interview with Sacramento TV station KCRA, his first in months.

In a reason unlikely to be repeated by Mr. Hannity and Mrs. Conway, Mr. Comey said that while former special counsel Robert Mueller’s report shows that Mr. Trump participated in “deeply concerning” conduct, the remedy should come at the ballot box, not from Congress.

“As a citizen, I kind of hope [Mr. Trump isn’t impeached] because I think the American people would be let off the hook if Donald Trump were impeached and removed from office,” he told the NBC affiliate in a video posted at its site. “And a lot of his supporters would think some sort of coup had taken place.”

Instead, he said, the American people need to “take responsibility” for the situation and “vote next November” to remove him from office.

“We need an inflection point,” Mr. Comey said. “An impeachment would deprive us of that, and we need to show what we stand for.”