Democratic Rep. Elijah Cummings, the chairman of the committee, kicked off the hearing by saying that there are “legitimate questions” about Cohen’s credibility, given his previous guilty plea for lying to Congress.
Cummings also warned that if Cohen lied to the committee on Wednesday, lawmakers would refer the case to the Justice Department for criminal prosecution.
That said, Cummings added, “The days of protecting the president at all costs are over. They’re over.”
The Maryland congressman pointed to Cohen’s prepared remarks, in which Cohen accused Trump of engaging in criminal conduct while in office.
The alleged conduct was related to the hush-money payment Cohen facilitated to the porn star Stormy Daniels during the election. Cohen previously admitted to making the payment “in coordination with and at the direction of” Trump, who was a Republican candidate at the time.
Cohen also submitted a copy of a check he received from Trump, while he was in office, to reimburse Cohen for the Daniels payment.
“This new evidence raises a host of troubling legal and ethical concerns about the president’s actions in the White House and before,” Cummings said.
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