backdrop of a dramatic day in washington. >> i know what mr. trump is. he is a racist. he is a con man and a cheat. >> reporter: the keeper of donald trump's secrets, his personal lawyer for a decade, michael cohen, now dumping on his old boss. >> while this was going on, the drama back in washington, your former lawyer, what's your response to michael cohen. >> the most important question up there was the one on collusion, and he said he saw no collusion, so we'll see what happens, but it was pretty shameful, i think. >> reporter: michael cohen called trump a racist. >> and he told me that black people would never vote for him, because they were too stupid. >> reporter: called him a con man. >> the campaign for him was always a marketing opportunity. >> reporter: and called trump a bully. >> how many times did mr. trump ask you to threat and individual or entity on his behalf? >> quite a few times. >> 50 times? >> more. >> 100 times? >> more.

200 times. >> 500? >> probably. >> reporter: bombshell after bombshell from a man who claimed to have been in the room when it happened, but he's also a known liar. he's about to go to jail for among other things, lying to congress. >> mr. cohen, how long did you work in the white house? >> i never worked in the white house. >> that's point, isn't it, mr. cohen? >> no, sir. >> yes, it is. you wanted to work in the white house. >> no, sir. >> you didn't get brought to the dance. >> i actually think it was a sad day for america. anytime that you have the president dragged through the mud that way it hurts our democracy. >> reporter: how worried should the president be? >> michael cohen was very specific in what he offered today. if the dots are connected, it could create a strong case for a criminal investigation if not impeachment. >> reporter: today's hearing was almost a split-screen moment. the president off being a

statesman while his former lawyer brought up a wide variety of issues. the hearing offered tantalizing tidbits on the russia investigation. >> questions have been raised whether i know direct evidence that mr. trump or his campaign colluded with russia. i do not. and i want to be clear. but i have my suspicions. >> reporter: cohen claimed to have been in the room when don trump jr. informed his father about setting up that infamous meeting with the russian lawyer. >> i recall mr. trump leaning over and talking to his father in a low voice which i could clearly hear and saying the meeting is all set, and i remember mr. trump saying okay, good, let me know. >> reporter: cohen also claimed he knew first hand that before the 2016 conventions trump was aware of stolen e-mails in the possession of wikileaks. >> i was in mr. trump's office. mr. stone on the speakerphone. mr. stone told mr. trump that he

had just gotten off the phone with julian assange and that mr. assange told mr. stone that within a couple of days there would be a massive dump of e-mails that would damage hillary clinton's campaign. mr. trump responded by stating to the effect wouldn't that be great? >> reporter: assange's attorney disputed that account, telling abc news roger stone did not have the telephone call michael cohen described. cohen claimed candidate trump continued to lie about his business dealings in russia, up to the moment he won the presidency. >> mr. trump knew of and directed the trump moscow negotiations throughout the campaign and lied about it. he lied about it because he never expected to win. he also lied about it because he stood to make hundreds of millions of dollars on the moscow real estate project. >> reporter: cohen claimed that

white house lawyers reviewed his testimony to congress, allegedly insisting on the lie to which he pled guilty. >> mr. trump's personal lawyers reviewed and edited my statement to congress about the timing of the moscow tower negotiation before i gave it. >> reporter: president trump's legal team denied that claim as completely false. finally, cohen claimed there are other matters that federal prosecutors are investigating with his help, but he declined to be specific. >> is there any other wrongdoing or illegal act that you are aware of regarding donald trump that we haven't yet discussed today? >> yes, and, again, those are part of the investigation that's currently being looked at by the southern district of new york. >> there were a lot of juicy tidbits about the russia vision, but there was no real smoking gun, was there? >> there isn't a smoking gun. while there was lots to connect the dots, there is nothing that establishes the state of mind

that's needed to establish a crime. >> reporter: s cohen said today directly is against what he said before. initially, cohen offered a different explanation, consistent with the president's story. >> did you know about the $130,000 payment to stormy daniels? then why, why did michael cohen make it? . >> reporter: now cohen insists it was a criminal scheme to violate campaign finance laws concocted with the president's blessing. cohen for the first time produced one of the reimbursement checks with the president's unmistakable signature. >> $35,000 check was one of the installments paid throughout the year while he was president. >> someone needs to defend the

president of the united states here. aus oy who says he has kn of it. the president is sitting there in vietnam fuming that no one's defending him. >> reporter: the president was in fact fuming. >> i call it the witch hunt. this should never happen to another president. this is so bad for our country. so bad. >> it's true that michael cohen does have a credibility issue. but the bottom line here is that at this point he really had nothing to lose. he could get a reduction in sentence for cooperation, but he can't lie or make things up. it could actually hurt him. >> reporter: but after this one day of hearings, there is blood in the water. >> and i can only warn people, the more people that follow mr. trump as i did, blindly, are going to suffer the same consequences that i'm suffering. >> reporter: michael cohen will soon be headed to prison, but he seems determined he's not alone in taking the fall.

i'm david wright for "nightline" in new york. >> our thanks to up next, behind the scenes of "grey's anatomy's" milestone moment. scenes of "grey's anatomy" milestone moment. milestone moment. stage 2 breast cancer. i have three little kids. i can't have cancer. so we decided to travel to cancer treatment centers of america. dr. fernandez was wonderful. he said it was up to me to do what's best. it's about giving her options, where amy has all the information to make a decision that's best for her. we left on day one feeling like we're gonna beat this and this is the place that's gonna help us do it... that feeling is priceless. learn more at cancercenter.com. appointments available now. learn more at cancercenter.com. ito take care of anyct messy situations.. and put irritation in its place. and if i can get comfortable keeping this tookus safe and protected... you can get comfortable doing the same with yours. preparation h. get comfortable with it. 98% of us don't get enough omega-3s.

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that leave therea lasting impression. like the feeling of movement as a new journey begins, or the sight of soft fur, warmed by the morning sun. you might remember new flavours, the sound of an old friend's laugh, or a view that defies all expectations. these are the memories that stay with you, long after the moments have passed. now to the show that's been empowering women, evoking emotions and inspiring med students and hypochondriacs alike. we're behind the scenes of graygra "grey's anatomy's" record-break episode. why the hit series seems to be here to stay. for 15 seasons, "grey's anatomy"

has captivated viewers with heart-stopping drama and heart-breaking romance. >> pick me. choose me. love me. >> reporter: by the show's own tally, 1500 surgeries, 100 steamy hookups, 20 weddings, and 400 seriouslies. at the heart of it all, ellen pompeo, one of tv's highest-paid women. the trials and tribulations of dr. meredith gray in the o.r., and after hours have powered "grey's anatomy" since the beginning. does meredith find love? and in the end, does she meet a man? >> i think the message we want to send is no woman really needs a man. partners are nice, but you don't need them, you don't need someone's approval to make you whole or make you matter, but

love is fun and love is ultimately what we're all doing on this planet. >> reporter: and tomorrow night, episode 332. the show hits a massive milestone as the longestning prime time medical drama ever. after the tragic loss of dr. mcdreamy. her husband, dr. shepherd, meredith may be falling for a younger man, jockimo casanova. >> i think there's something here. >> reporter: you know if you break meredith's heart, you'll hear from people. >> people will come to my door, i'm afraid. i'm very trying not to break her heart for a lot of reasons. personal reasons. >> reporter: he is among the 40 or so new doctors who have scrubbed in. >> if i'm sleeping, don't wake me unless your patient is actually dying. >> reporter: but chandra is one of the original members still

reporting for duty. when you go back to the original audition did you think you nailed it? >> no. it wasn't for me at all. they were looking for a short, white, blond female that they called the nazi. >> reporter: typecasting. "grey's anatomy" broke the mold when it premiered. >> i remember being kind of gob smacked when it came on. i thought the asian lady and the black dude and the other black dude. they're all kind of equals in this world? >> reporter: that inclusion, something the cast members take pride in. >> race wasn't part of the story line. it was just the chief surgeon is black and she's a lesbian and this patient is transgendered. they were just people in the world. >> reporter: the stars all give credit to the creator, shonda rhimes who left for netflix. 15 years ago, shonda planted a flag and a bar that was quite high. >> she changed the game.

it took hollywood quite a bit to catch up. >> reporter: krista vernoff is the show runner. >> it changed television across the board. >> reporter: these weren't african-americans, they were humans. >> they were humans, and they weren't one black person in a roomful of white people. >> reporter: behind the camera, the show practices what it preaches, promoting 29 female directors, including pompeo and debbie allen. >> it is a place for women's empowerment because you have all of these women sitting in places of power who are in charge, and so we are reaching out to one another. >> today i'm going to change a life. >> reporter: allen plays a powerful matriarch on the show. she not only directs, she's one of the show's executive producers. >> i talked ellen pompeo into directing. it was one of the best things i ever did. >> reporter: what's it like being the man in the middle of it? >> it's a lot of fun. >> reporter: he is another veteran still doing rounds. >> i think every man would like

to do that, have such strong women around them. it keeps you vibrant and on your toes. >> reporter: another og has changed dramatically over the years. his now on-screen wife, camilla ludington. were you crushing on him? >> no, he was a jerk. >> it's mcdreamy and mcsteamy. >> reporter: we need to give you an mc name. >> mcevil? >> reporter: while dr. gray continues to save lives and fall in and out of love, in real life, pompeo is married and devoted mother of three. she labels herself as a personal assistant to her three kids. >> my kids really come first to me, and i want them to have the healthiest, most normal life and come home to them every day and this place allows me to do that. >> reporter: over the years, "nightline" has checked in with

pompeo and the rest of the cast of "grays." >> this is the emergency . themgey ro. over there is where i think the denny duquette memorial clinic is. >> reporter: can you believe you've been walking on this set for 13 years? even catching up with the gang in season two. >> he's got much better hair than me. >> reporter: now the show has a surprising new audience. how many teenagers are watching "grays"? >> i don't know a single person who i'm friends with who hasn't seen it. girls and boys. >> reporter: some in the new generation of fans weren't even born when it premiered but they binge watch. >> i've seen it five or six times. >> reporter: the entire series? you start from the beginning. >> i'm so devoted to the characters and i can't stop watching it. >> reporter: why do you think it's so addictive? >> this cast of characters doing this really massive job of saving lives, but when you look

at it, they're kind of high schoolers falling in love, getting married. >> reporter: and they're just as invested in the characters. what happened when mcdreamy died? >> i was very emotional. i played hooky from school for two days. >> reporter: hopefully your administrators aren't watching. >> i stopped watching the show for i think 12 days, my longest time ever. >> reporter: that's what's fueled the phenomenon for so long. it is as current and popular as it has been from the very beginning. what do you think explains that? >> i think because these characters are based on real-life issues, and they're going through betrayals and falling in love and jealousy and challenges. none of it is just fabricated. it's, this is what could happen. this is also what is happening. and i think that is why it's real.

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♪ ♪ in the shallow ♪ in the shallow ♪ we're far from the shallow now ♪ >> lady gaga and bradley cooper with that smoldering performance of "shallow" at the oscars this past sunday. and in case you missed it, she was just on with jimmy kimmel, her first sit-down since her win for best song. >> it's been quite a week, so. [cheers and applause] >> and addressing all the talk of a blossoming romance with her co-star after that oscar performance. >> people started saying like oh, they must be in love. >> yeah.

people saw love, and guess what, that's what we wanted you to see. >> yes. >> this is a love song, "shallow." the movie, "a star is born" is a love story. we worked so hard. we worked all week on that performance, bradley, who, i never relinquish control about a live stage performance, i've done about a million of them. but he directed this film and directed obviously all of the musical moments in the film and directed obviously "shallow", the moment in the film. so i knew i had the vision for how it should go. >> and more gaga on gma. thanks for watching "nightline." remember, full episodes always streaming on hulu. goodnight, america. goodni

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i have never seen the river this high. >> it's 8 or 9 feet maybe. >> look at that mailbox. >> anybody need a dining room table? >> few more feet and it will flood houses. >> the town of guerneville san island tonight cut off by the rielzing rising russian river. i'm cornell barnard. abc7 news starts right now. >> announcer: live where you live this is abc7 news. >> here's what you need to know about the flooding disaster in sonoma county. the russian river is cresting. 2000 homes businesses and other buildings have been flooded by up to 8 feet of water. 3600 people are now under evacuation orders. >> the national guard is there and a local state of emergency has been declared. abc7 news reporter cornell barnard is live in forestville. cornell, what's the situation there? >> reporter: alma and dan, we are just a few miles outside of guerneville, and you know this

is as far as we can go. all roads leading in and out are under water. flooding from the russian river has even reached this vineyard. that is the top of a barn that you're looking at. for now e locals say they are feeling trapped. >> there it goes. >> reporter: kim had her cell phone ready, watching flood waters from the russian river close in around her in guerneville. >> the video we took shows it rising right before our eyes. >> reporter: the river was rising so fast it buried every road leading in and out of guerneville under lots of water. from river road to highway 116. >> how deep is the floodsing here on 116? >> could be 9, 10 feet deep down there. there are a couple low spots. >> reporter: this view from sky 7 is truly the only way to show how widespread flooding is in guerneville. water was up to the roofs of some homes. there was flooding in the safe way parking lot and a few kayakers were navigating the streets down there, too. this fire crew decided it was just too risky to launch their

zodiac into flood waters. kamm and her boyfriend kelly decided not to evacuate for now. their home is safe. >> it does feel very isolating, like there's -- we really are trapped. >> reporter: as the russian river crests, officials warn residents to say in their homes. >> stay put. don't try to leave at this point because the roads are pretty much closed. the river is still rising even as we speak. >> reporter: many who live on the river say they know the risks, but many can't remember seeing flooding like this. >> it's exciting b you it's scary because, you know, we're seeing how much damage it's going to cause a lot of people. >> reporter: and tonight there is no telling what the damage estimate may be. tonight sonoma county officials say it may be another 24 hours before flood waters recede and roads are drivable once again. we're live in sonoma county, cornell barnard, abc7 news. >> thank you, cornell. in the nearby town monte rio is an island.

all roads in and out are submerged under flat waters. wayne freedman spent the day with residents. the only transportation was by boat. >> reporter: this is monte rio, a community very much under water. case in point, that area behind me this morning was dry, now it is flooded. a figure in the dark in monte rio tonight, a rather shy person helping yet another neighbor. his name, jeremy mokul. why you? >> i don't know. giving back to the community. >> reporter: and on a day when people watch the russian river to a slow rise, they weren't raging waters, but persistent ones. and troublesome to residents at ryans beach mobile home park where units don't move and people have stayed. >> we just usually put stuff up above on the higher floor, so hopefully we'll make it through this one. >> reporter: monte rio is downstream from guerneville and just not if more flood prone. they've seen the national guard in trucks today and rescued

beverley schaeffer and tipton from guerneville. >> we are sleeping in our house and the water came up in and it almost engulfed us. but we made it out. >> they pulled us out the window actually, the fire guys, yeah. >> reporter: the rising high water almost anticlimatic. >> about 8 or 9 feet maybe. >> reporter: now to jeremy late this morning as he took us on a tour in a canoe. he did stuff for like this for people all day long beginning with the crossing of the river on foot to get some equipment for friends. his last deed, helping a neighbor get to the store. then we think he called it a day before doing so, though, jeremy mokul had to cross that river once again in the dark. >> i have to. i got to get home. still have family over there. >> reporter: it will take time for the waters to recede. when they do, the problems in this region will not be over. in fact, they'll just be starting. next, the clean-up. in monte rio, wayne freedman,

abc7 news. >> all right. and let's take a look at the russian river right now. this is the very latest. it is at 47.43 feet right now, so major flooding continues. the record is 49.7. major flooding expected through tomorrow morning, then moderate flooding tomorrow afternoon. it is cresting right now, but will start to recede. flood warning is going for the russian river at guerneville. lighter rainfall right now in the south bay and san jose. very spotty and light on live doppler 7 as we get you into street level radar heading into the east bay, hayward, dublin, pleasanton. flood warnings do continue for many parts of the north bay as the runoff continues. those streams and those creeks are still running high and they are till seeing flooding. i'll be back with a look at the rainfall totals plus a look at the time line of when your next rain is coming. dan? he a okay, sandhya, thanks very much. one way to visualize how far the flooding has extended from the russian river is to take a look from above which we're going to do now for you.

sky 7 flew above monte rio, that's where a person rode a boat this afternoon. sky map 7 shows you 5th and church streets. here's what the same area looked like before being flooded with google earth image. take a look at this. you can see the russian river on the left of your screen before the overflowed. now you're looking at how much of monte rio has been covered by these flood waters. you can see more of sky 7's view of the flooding only abc7news.com. some remarkable images we can share with you. >> the napa river also flooded today. sky 7 shows flood waters around two homes. the same small lake is covering nearby vineyards and creeping onto adjacent roads. in marin county, part of westbound highway 7 will remain closed until tomorrow morning. abc7 was in novato as cal trans crews pumped water from the roadway. they had to exit 37 at atherton avenue. highway 37 eastbound lanes have

reopened. >> and the snowy stormy conditions are causing problems in the sierra. i-80 is he rye maining closed between colfax and nevada state line because of extreme snow and avalanche danger. look at all of this snow. i-80 has been closed for more than 24 hours now because of heavy snowfall. earlier today we had extended sky 7 coverage in the north bay. if you weren't near a tv, you could still watch the live stream on the abc7 news app. the app is also how we send out push alerts when breaking news happens. >> new developments tonight, the man accused of shooting and killing a well known danville businessman is dead. mark sapien reportedly shot him several in the head in illinois. amanda castillo sat down with the victim's family in danville. >> reporter: nancy moore and her family got news they waited