Veteran journalist Carl Bernstein said Sunday that most of President Trump Donald John TrumpHR McMaster says president's policy to withdraw troops from Afghanistan is 'unwise' Cast of 'Parks and Rec' reunite for virtual town hall to address Wisconsin voters Biden says Trump should step down over coronavirus response MORE's "lies" are "about Russia."

Bernstein said on CNN's "Reliable Sources" that he has spoken with lawyers of defendants in special counsel Robert Mueller Robert (Bob) MuellerCNN's Toobin warns McCabe is in 'perilous condition' with emboldened Trump CNN anchor rips Trump over Stone while evoking Clinton-Lynch tarmac meeting The Hill's 12:30 Report: New Hampshire fallout MORE's investigation who believe Trump "has been lying at every turn about his relationship with Russia."

"Let us look at all of the lies," Bernstein added. "Follow the money, follow the lies. They are all mostly — and most vehemently — about Russia."

.@carlbernstein: “This is about the most serious counterintelligence people we have in the US government saying, ‘Oh my god, the President’s words and actions lead us to conclude that somehow he has become a witting, unwitting or half-witting pawn...to Vladimir Putin.'” pic.twitter.com/QOSdJPsJN5 — Reliable Sources (@ReliableSources) January 13, 2019

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The veteran reporter also charged that Trump acts like he's "beholden" to Russia and that his attitude toward Moscow is not "benign."

Bernstein's comments come after The New York Times reported Friday that the FBI in 2017 opened a counterintelligence investigation into whether Trump was working on behalf of Russia. The probe was reportedly prompted when Trump fired former FBI Director James Comey.

And on Saturday, The Washington Post reported that Trump has worked to hide the details of his private conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, including by taking notes from an interpreter following a 2017 meeting with the Russian leader.

Bernstein added during his "Reliable Sources" interview that "we don’t know the answers" to questions about Trump's relationship with Russia. But he added that Trump's claims that there have been "no collusion" between him and Russia are "nonsense."

"Donald Trump has tried to convince us that unless there’s some kind of smoking gun or recording of him in the room with Putin saying, ‘Yes, Vladimir I’ll do your bidding,’ then there’s been 'no collusion.' That’s nonsense," Bernstein said.

"This is about the most serious counterintelligence people we have in the U.S. government saying, ‘Oh my god, the president’s words and actions lead us to conclude that somehow he has become a witting, an unwitting or half-witting pawn certainly in some regards to Vladimir Putin,' " Bernstein added.