'I'm Spartacus': Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani performs bizarre impression of Cory Booker live on Fox News

Crude mimic during latest in series of increasingly bizarre TV interviews given by president's lawyer amid growing push for impeachment

Rudy Giuliani launched a peculiar attack on New Jersey mayor Cory Booker during a televised interview, in his latest bizarre contribution to Fox News following the move by Democrats to impeach the president.

Mr Giuliani has become increasingly embroiled in scandal surrounding Donald Trump over his dealings with Ukraine, after he was found to have been involved in interactions between Kiev and Washington despite not holding a diplomatic role in the president’s administration.

However, the president’s lawyer has chosen not to stay quiet despite the ongoing move to impeach Mr Trump – instead using the spotlight afforded him to refocus attention on allegations he has made against Joe Biden and his son, Hunter.

In his most recent exchange on Fox News’ The Ingraham Angle, Mr Giuliani was presented with footage of Mr Booker saying “if you come through Joe Biden you’ll have to go through me” in reference to the administration’s allegations.

With host Laura Ingraham referring to Mr Brooker as a “tough guy”, Mr Giuliani - in what appeared to be a crude mimic of the former Mayor for Newark - scrunched up his shoulders, lowered his voice and said “I’m Spartacus” – repeating the phrase again for effect.

The reference to the Stanley Kubrick film, which ends with recaptured slaves all giving their name as Spartacus in a show of solidarity with the titular Thracian gladiator, is an apparent reference to Mr Booker’s statements during the confirmation hearing for supreme court judge Brett Kavanagh.

During the hearing, Mr Booker publicly leaked documents discussing Mr Kavanagh’s views on abortion and affirmative action, known to be confidential and for the eyes of the senate committee only.

Mr Booker had argued there was no reason to hide the judge’s views from the public – sharing the documents despite risking expulsion from office under senate rules.

“Bring the charges” he told republican colleagues at the time, with Democratic ally Richard Blumenthal repeating “apply the rule, bring the charges… all of us are ready to face that rule”.

Mr Booker said the exchange was "about the closest I'll ever have in my life to an 'I am Spartacus' moment".

However the moment was picked up as a target for derision by Mr Trump’s supporters and media sympathetic to the president.

Unusually for MrTrump, who has a tendency to apply nicknames to his opponents, the president has never directly referred to Mr Booker as Spartacus – only alluding to the incident once at a rally in West Virginia several weeks later.

It is the latest in the president’s lawyer recent series of increasingly peculiar TV interviews.

Last week he told Fox News his personal mission as the president’s lawyer was to “disrupt the world” before posting a tweet at 4:54am lashing out at Democratic congresswoman Rashida Tlaib.

And last month, as the impeachment campaign ramped up, Mr Giuliani admonished a pundit on the same network who had quoted his own words back to him, saying “Shut up moron, shut up. You don’t know what you’re talking about idiot. You’re just lying…just keep your lying mouth shut.”