CNN commentator Carl Bernstein Carl BernsteinTrump calls Carl Bernstein 'total nut job' after CNN analyst's 'homicidal president' charge Carl Bernstein: Woodward's Trump tapes 'smoking gun' of 'homicidal negligence' Bob Woodward to appear on '60 Minutes' Sunday to discuss new Trump book, 'Rage' MORE suggested Wednesday that former national security adviser Michael Flynn is key to helping the FBI unravel a vast "cover-up" 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 campaign's ties to Russia.

"I think it's obvious that Gen. Flynn is in up to his neck in terms, not just of possible crimes involving his speeches and whether or not he registered as a foreign agent, which he should have and didn't," Bernstein said on CNN's "New Day."

Top lawmakers on the House Oversight Committee said on Tuesday that Flynn might have broken the law by accepting payments from Russia and Turkey and failing to disclose the payments to the government.

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"There, he is central to what the FBI believes is a cover-up going on among people close to the president of the United States about what happened with the Trump campaign and Russia," Bernstein, who rose to fame as part of the reporting duo that investigated former President Nixon's Watergate scandal, said.

Flynn, a top aide to Trump's election campaign, was appointed as Trump's national security adviser in November. He resigned in February amid revelations that he discussed sanctions with Russia's ambassador in the month before Trump took office, then mislead top administration officials about the conversations.

Flynn came under fire once against in March when he registered as a foreign agent with the Justice Department, after revealing that his lobbying firm had done work last year that may have benefited the Turkish government.

Flynn has reportedly sought a deal that would give him immunity from prosecution in exchange for his testimony, with his attorney saying that he "certainly has a story to tell."