Updated at 4:15 p.m. with Cornyn and Cruz declining to defend Trump, after Castro called for Sarah Sanders' resignation.

WASHINGTON — Texas Republicans kept a distance Monday after President Donald Trump's campaign chairman and two other former aides were hit with felony charges — forcing the administration to cope with the fallout on its own.

Texas Sens. John Cornyn and Ted Cruz both declined to defend Trump or raise doubts about the merits of the charges, while across the aisle, Texas Democrats viewed the indictments as vindication.

One accused the White House press secretary of peddling "outright lies" by denying any link to the president and demanded she resign.

The sharply varied reactions underscored the high stakes of special counsel Robert Mueller's probe into Russian meddling in the 2016 election. Republicans, wary of a president setting the record for low public approval ratings, have no interest in sharing whatever taint might befall him.

Democrats are itching for a breakthrough to hobble the president.

Fort Worth Rep. Marc Veasey, a Democrat, predicted new and creative deflection from the White House, now that Mueller secured a confession proving that at least one Trump campaign aide did, in fact, engage in collusion with Russia.

What new twitter war will @POTUS create today to deflect from #TrumpRussia investigation & answers for #Niger ambush? — Rep. Marc Veasey (@RepVeasey) October 30, 2017

"What new twitter war will @POTUS create today to deflect from #TrumpRussia investigation," Veasey wondered.

Hours after the indictments were handed up, Cornyn, the majority whip, abruptly ended a GOP news conference on judicial nominees when journalists insisted on asking about the charges. But he said, "I don't see how the indictment changes the president's ability to do his job."

Cruz — whose presidential ambitions Trump quashed — told The Dallas Morning News the indictments "are undoubtedly serious" and he wants to see the "strength of the factual predicate behind them."

"That's why we have a judicial process," he said. "We'll have to see if the facts back up the charges."

Paul Manafort, the Trump campaign's chairman for several months in 2016, was indicted on 12 counts of tax evasion and money laundering, along with his deputy, Rick Gates. Both pleaded not guilty.

Mueller also obtained a guilty plea on Oct. 5 — unsealed Monday, with the other two indictments — from George Papadopoulos, a member of the campaign's foreign policy team. Papadopoulos confessed to interacting with Russians promising "dirt" on Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, then lying to the FBI about the contacts.

Houston Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, a Democrat, called the guilty plea the "most serious suggestion of alleged Russian collusion" with the Trump campaign.

"The dam now seems to be broken and the Congressional investigations should be expanded and intensified," she said in a statement. "The integrity of this constitutional government is at stake."

The Trump team has long sought to downplay Manafort's ties to the president — a stance belied by his service as the campaign's chairman, a high visibility post that included daily briefings for the news media at the GOP nominating convention.

"We've been saying from Day 1 that there's been no evidence of Trump-Russia collusion" and the indictments don't change that, insisted White House press secretary Sarah Sanders. "Today's announcement has nothing to do with the president and nothing to do with the president's campaign."

That prompted Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-San Antonio, to demand Sanders' resignation, on grounds that "she lacks any credibility."

Sarah Huckabee Sanders should resign as @PressSec. She lacks any credibility, outright lies to the American people. https://t.co/9GCDQ1VQzm — Joaquin Castro (@JoaquinCastrotx) October 30, 2017

In March, Sean Spicer said Paul Manafort had "played a very limited role for a very limited amount of time" in Trump's campaign. pic.twitter.com/UDMtB6FUg3 — ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) October 30, 2017

Trump himself on Monday tried to distance himself from Manafort and the others, ignoring the Papadopoulos confession, which refutes his long-standing insistence that no one on his campaign worked with Russians to help him defeat Clinton.

A Trump tweet from March 31, 2016, showed him meeting with a dozen advisers, including Papadopolous and Sen. Jeff Sessions, who is now the attorney general. The future president called it a "national security meeting." Papadopolous is two seats to Sessions' left in the photo.

Despite the connections, Trump and his aides insisted there are none — a claim that Texas Democrats rejected.

Cruz, however, called it premature to draw conclusions from Papadopoulos' guilty plea, despite the admission that he'd lied to authorities about his contacts with Russians.

"At this point we have allegations, but not nearly sufficient detail to know what precisely occurred," Cruz said. "... That's why there are multiple congressional investigations that are ongoing and why the special counsel was appointed in the first place. I hope both Congress and the public will have the facts fully developed. That's a process that will take time and is ongoing."

Sorry, but this is years ago, before Paul Manafort was part of the Trump campaign. But why aren't Crooked Hillary & the Dems the focus????? — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 30, 2017

....Also, there is NO COLLUSION! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 30, 2017

Rep. Al Green, a Houston Democrat who has called for Trump's impeachment and removal from office, pointed to the indictments as progress. "THIS is how you drain the swamp!" he tweeted, borrowing Trump's language.

Manafort and Gates have been indicted. Papadopoulos plead guilty. THIS is how you drain the swamp! #IndictmentDay #ImpeachTrump — Congressman Al Green (@RepAlGreen) October 30, 2017

Austin Rep. Lloyd Doggett, a senior Democrat, lauded the indictments and said that "while we lack the full story of any Trump collusion, one adviser has now plead guilty to lying about his Russian contact," suggesting the revelations have only begun.

My full statement on the indictments issued by Special Counsel Mueller: pic.twitter.com/iqV9U253jx — Lloyd Doggett (@RepLloydDoggett) October 30, 2017

"Unquestionably, the Russians attacked our democracy in a successful effort to elect their preferred candidate," Doggett said. The "sweeping charges" against Manafort "underscore the importance of not sweeping any of this investigation under the rug."

He urged Republican colleagues to send this "strong, public" message to Trump: "Any interference with this investigation is at your peril."

A federal magistrate ordered house arrest for Manafort and Gates, with bonds of $10 million and $5 million respectively.

"Americans should be alarmed at the lawlessness in the highest ranks of the Republican Party," said Texas Democratic Party chair Gilberto Hinojosa. "These indictments underscore the need for a thorough, complete and honest investigation into how far Trump's White House is compromised. This is not the end of the Trump-Russia scandal."

The U.S. House wasn't in session on Monday, but lawmakers in both parties were active on social media. Only the Democrats, however, were addressing the indictments.

At the Senate, Republicans weren't eager to talk about the case. Cornyn emphasized that lawmakers continue to investigate Russian meddling, including a probe by the Senate Intelligence Committee that he sits on.

"The special counsel's got his lane and we have our lane. We're focused on making sure the Russian active measures investigation continues," Cornyn told reporters before the news conference on judicial nominees.

Asked if he's concerned about the indictments, he said there's been "a lot of work done both in the House and in the Senate, but the special counsel has got his own responsibilities and it doesn't involve us."