It may not have originated with Watergate, but the saying “the cover-up is worse than the crime” certainly got a boost from that affair. Nixon’s convoluted efforts to hide his connection to the break-ins served only to fan the flames and draw attention to the story, and the lesson every politician is supposed to have taken away from the resultant mess is that it’s better to fess up to a problem than to hide it. Otherwise, you end up claiming you’re “not a crook” … or discussing the meaning of “is.”

Under that theory, a guy who claims he can shoot people on Fifth Avenue without losing support seems like he should be confession central; ready to spill his guts on everything he’s done before it can fester. But there are two reasons why Donald Trump has to maintain that his Russia connection is “fake news.” First, it would be admitting a mistake, and chief among Trump’s long list of flaws is his inability to admit that he has any flaws.

Second … the conventional wisdom is wrong in this case. Because the crime is worse.

The connections between the Trump camp and Moscow during the campaign, when Vladimir Putin was trying to subvert American democracy. … Whenever queried about this highly sensitive matter, Trump and his minions have said there were no contacts between anyone in his crew and the Putin regime during the 2016 campaign. This is a cover-up.

The crime is that Trump’s campaign did have contacts with Russia. Frequently. And on several fronts.

It was stated openly just days after the election …

Russia said it was in contact with President-elect Donald Trump’s team during the U.S. election campaign, despite repeated denials by the Republican candidate’s advisers that any links existed.

And it’s confirmed in intelligence reports on the same day Flynn resigned.