Thread by @ByTimRyan

Former Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski has arrived for a hearing before the House Judiciary Committee, which should start shortly.

The White House wrote to the committee yesterday saying Lewandowski will not be able to answer questions about conversations he had with Trump or Trump's senior advisers based on "long-settled principles" of executive branch confidentiality.

This cuts off questions from Democrats about Lewandowski's presence in the Mueller report.

The report says Trump asked Lewandowski to deliver a dictated letter urging then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions to limit the scope of Mueller's investigation

In a letter back to the White House, Jerry Nadler said the White House's claim is invalid.

He said Lewandowski was not helping Trump in the "process of shaping policies and making decisions" during the incident mentioned in the Mueller report.

"No decision by any court suggests that the president is entitled to confidentiality under the circumstances here, when he enlists a private political operative in his efforts to undermine an ongoing law enforcement investigation," Nadler wrote.

In his opening statement, Nadler said the White House's theory of privilege is "a cover-up, plain and simple."

He told Lewandowski that he is expected to answer the committee's questions today.

Lewandowski has been sworn in and is now starting his opening statement.

He says he hopes the hearing will be "productive," and notes he has already answered questions for more than 20 hours, both before Congress and to the Special Counsel's Office.

Nadler starts by asking Lewandowski if he met alone with Trump in the Oval Office as mentioned in the Mueller Report.

Lewandowski asks for specific reference to the page and paragraph in the Mueller report that mentions the meeting.

The committee is voting on a Republican motion to adjourn the hearing.

Stems from Nadler going over his 5 minutes for questions as Lewandowski declined to answer questions, citing WH privilege claim, and stalled by asking for specific Mueller references.

So in short, this hearing is going about as expected.

Nadler directed Lewandowski to answer questions from Eric Swalwell that Lewandowski refused to answer based on WH privilege claim.

"The president is intent on obstructing our legitimate oversight - you are aiding him in that obstruction," Nadler said.

Nadler says holding Lewandowski in contempt is "certainly under consideration."

Now the committee is going forward with questions from committee staffers.

Some heated arguments now on the committee over the people Democrats want to have question Lewandowski.

Collins says they're consultants, not staff, and therefore shouldn't be able to question a witness.

Lewandowski, now facing questions from the House Judiciary Committee consulting counsel Barry Berke, will not say whether he refused to answer questions from Mueller without getting immunity

Collins wants to be the Republican staff member allowed to question Lewandowski, but Nadler says he doesn't count as staff.