WASHINGTON – A Maryland congressman says Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder is responsible for lead contamination in Flint's water supply and would likely face criminal charges if he were running a business.
Democrat Elijah Cummings made his comments Thursday during Congress' third hearing on the city's water crisis. Cummings is the senior Democrat on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.
Snyder told the panel at a contentious hearing that the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality repeatedly gave him assurances that water being piped in from the Flint River was safe, when in reality it had dangerous levels of lead.
But Cummings says the governor should have done more to push back against state experts.
Republican Jason Chaffetz of Utah chairs the oversight panel. He says the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency also deserves blame in the Flint crisis.