Billionaire, activist Tom Steyer defends himself against GOP attack in Michael Cohen hearing

WASHINGTON, DC (KGO) -- Bay Area billionaire and liberal activist Tom Steyer took to social media to defend himself against Republican attacks during the Michael Cohen hearing before the House Oversight Committee on Wednesday.

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Steyer took to Twitter to shut down rumors of financial ties to the president's former fixer, tweeting: "For the record, I am not paying, nor have I paid, Mr. Cohen's legal bills."

The 61-year-old billionaire and San Francisco resident also commended the decision by House Oversight Committee Chairman Elijah Cummings to hold the hearing.

"This morning, with Mr. Cohen's testimony, in front of the House Oversight Committee, we are now officially in a constitutional crisis. The American Public is finally able to hear firsthand, the kind of criminal behavior has characterized the Trump Administration and Mr. Trump himself."

Steyer's Twitter posts followed the opening statement from Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, the ranking Republican of the House Oversight Committee, who called Cohen a "patsy," for Democrats, adding, "They've got to find somebody somewhere to say something so they can try to remove the president from office. Because Tom Steyer told them to."