When this week started, I genuinely thought that I’d be writing about Madonna’s surreal VMA appearance or perhaps Cher’s continuing Abba tributes. Alas, that was not to be. It turned out to be a week in which all manner of big political events happened around the President of the United States. (And elsewhere, as well; Australia has a new Prime Minister! Spain is going to exhume the remains of Francisco Franco! We’re just going to focus on the U.S., is all.) So, without further ado, let’s dive into the five is-this-really-happening online conversations that the nation's is-this-really-still-happening President was looming over this week.

Guilty Seems To Be The Hardest Word, Vol. I

What Happened: In the first movement of the President’s no-good, very-bad week, Michael Cohen told a court (and the press) a few things that may not have been surprising, but also weren't expected.

Where It Blew Up: Twitter, media reports

What Really Happened: As journalists and political pundits alike waited impatiently for a potential verdict in the Paul Manafort trial—don't worry, we’ll get to that—news also started filtering out that the President’s fixer and personal lawyer was going to appear in court later that day, potentially to plead guilty to charges. And then, all of a sudden…

The details matter so much, in fact, that no one was immediately sure what the plea would mean for special counsel Robert Mueller's larger investigation into President Trump. But that mystery didn’t last long:

Of course, there was all kinds of coverage and analysis of what Cohen was saying with the plea. But then, things got surprisingly real:

In case you missed the implication, Lanny Davis — Cohen’s attorney — took to Twitter to spell it out to everyone:

And, just like that, the president became an unindicted co-conspirator in serious campaign finance violations.