Trump ‘Relieved’ by Acquittal in Impeachment Trial: Adviser

President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump on stage after speaking to supporters at Joint Base Andrews before boarding Air Force One for his last time as President in Joint Base Andrews, Md., on Jan. 20, 2021. Pete Marovich/Pool/Getty Images

Former Trump campaign strategist Jason Miller told Newsmax on Monday that former President Donald Trump is glad that his impeachment trial is over and relieved that he has been acquitted.

“Of course, the president was relieved,” Miller told the “Spicer & Co.” program. “He was glad to be getting past this second impeachment witch hunt.”

On Feb. 13, the Senate acquitted Trump with a 57–43 vote, 10 votes shy of the 67 needed for a “guilty” verdict. The vote cleared Trump of the charge of “incitement of insurrection,” an allegation that his lawyers panned as a “monstrous lie” that didn’t reflect the reality of what happened on Jan. 6, when the U.S. Capitol was breached and overrun.

“An insurrection—unlike a riot—is an organized movement acting for the express purpose to overthrow and take possession of a government’s powers,” Trump’s lawyers wrote in filings, arguing that the former president’s speech “was not an act encouraging an organized movement to overthrow the United States government.”

Protesters clash with police at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Jan. 6, 2021. Julio Cortez/AP Photo

In a statement following his acquittal, Trump thanked his supporters and denounced the impeachment effort as a “witch hunt.”

“This has been yet another phase of the greatest witch hunt in the history of our Country,” Trump said.

Trump also teased a political comeback, saying that, “our historic, patriotic and beautiful movement to Make America Great Again has only just begun. In the months ahead I have much to share with you, and I look forward to continuing our incredible journey together to achieve American greatness for all of our people.”

While Trump has remained out of sight since leaving office on Jan. 20, releasing few statements and mostly communicating through intermediaries, Miller said Trump will be back.

President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump on stage after speaking to supporters at Joint Base Andrews before boarding Air Force One for his last time as President in Joint Base Andrews, Md., on Jan. 20, 2021. Pete Marovich/Pool/Getty Images

He said last month that Trump will become active in politics again to “make sure” Republicans win the House in 2022.

“He’s got a ton of money. He’s the biggest name. He’s going to get that done,“ he said on Steve Bannon’s ”War Room.”

Meanwhile, three-quarters of Republicans told Quinnipiac University pollsters that they want Trump to play a prominent role in the Republican Party.

The national poll, released two days after Trump’s acquittal, found that 75 percent of Republican respondents said Trump should play a major role in the GOP going forward, with that number dropping to 34 percent if all categories of respondents are considered.

At the same time, 87 percent of Republicans said they think Trump should not be barred from holding future office, with that number dropping to 43 percent if Democrats and Independents are included in the polling mix.

“He is certainly not out of favor with the GOP. Twice impeached, vilified by Democrats in the trial, and virtually silenced by social media ... despite it all, Donald Trump keeps a solid foothold in the Republican Party,” Quinnipiac University Polling Analyst Tim Malloy said in a Feb. 15 release.