MICHAEL COHEN (Wikipedia).

Michael Cohen, former lawyer and “fixer” for Donald Trump, told a House committee on Wednesday that the president was “a con man” and a “racist” who used his presidential campaign to help his financial investments.

While Cohen added accusation after accusation against the president, he stopped short of stating that he or his aides had colluded with Russia to influence the 2016 election, saying he “had no direct evidence” of collusion.

Cohen has been convicted of lying to Congress and faces a three-year sentence in federal prison.

Speaking to the House Committee on Oversight and Reform, he made several other accusations against Trump, saying that he lied about having bone spurs as a way of avoiding the military draft in the Vietnam era, and that he told Cohen to lie to Trump’s wife, Melania, about payoffs to an adult film star with whom Trump allegedly had an affair.

“Lying to the First Lady was one of my biggest regrets,” Cohen said. “She is a kind, good person. I respect her greatly, and she did not deserve that.”

On the subject of race, Cohen said that Trump has told him “blacks are too stupid” to vote for him.

He added that he felt Trump had never expected to win the election. “The campaign – for him – was always a marketing opportunity.”

The president responded in a tweet, saying “He is lying in order to reduce his Republicans reply: “Liar, liar, pants on fire.”

Republicans reply: “Liar, liar, pants on fire”

In response, some Republican lawmakers attacked Cohen’s honesty. “Liar, liar, pants on fire,” said Rep. Paul Gozar of Arizona. “No one should even listen to you or give you credibility.”  Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio said “It certainly is the first time a convicted perjurer has been brought to be a star witness in a hearing.”

Some Republicans on the committee brought posters with a photo of Cohen that read “Liar Liar Pants on Fire” to the hearing.