Hayden, a frequent critic of President Trump, told Hill.TV’s Krystal Ball and Buck Sexton that he believes "impeachment would be a bad idea."
Translation: Let's keep the punching bag we've got. Mike Pence would be nearly impossible to challenge.
"If President Trump is somehow forced to leave office before the end of his first term, one-third of America will believe it was a soft coup conducted by people, well frankly like everybody here at the table would be their view," Hayden said. "I think the only way we move beyond this in any way that’s healthy for our democracy is we vote," the Obama-era intelligence official added.
Hayden is among a handful of former Deep State officials under consideration for having their security clearance revoked amid concerns of profiteering from access to sensitive government intelligence. Last week, the former NSA chief, along with other veteran intelligence officials, issued a statement condemning President Trump for revoking the security clearance of former CIA Director John Brennan.