Trump's advisers repeatedly assured him for weeks Nancy Pelosi wouldn't have the votes for impeachment: report

On Thursday, The New York Times published an analysis of President Donald Trump's political position in the wake of being impeached for abuse of power and obstruction of Congress.

One of the key takeaways, according to reporters Peter Baker, Maggie Haberman, Jeremy Peters, and Elaina Plott, is that until the final hours, Trump didn't really believe he was going to be impeached — because his advisers had been telling him as much.

"For Mr. Trump, the day after found him still a little shellshocked, according to people close to him," stated the report. "Despite the clear momentum behind impeachment among Democrats in recent weeks, some of Mr. Trump’s advisers tried to convince him — and themselves — that Speaker Nancy Pelosi did not have the votes and might not even bring the articles of impeachment to the floor, despite warnings from the White House director of legislative affairs, Eric Ueland, that the votes were there."

Per the Times, Trump's campaign is doing its utmost to capitalize off of the impeachment, with his campaign manager Brad Parscale branding Democrats "traitors" in a fundraising blast and proclaiming, "Let's make sure they know that we will NEVER FORGET." But some Republicans are doubtful Trump can politically benefit.

"The world is going to end 500 times between impeachment and the election," said Cory Bliss, a Republican strategist who led the party's unsuccessful effort to hold the House majority in 2018. "We don't live in a society where anything can last for 10 or 11 months."

You can read more here.