On Wednesday night, Stephen Colbert sat down with Stormy Daniels’s lawyer, Michael Avenatti—but before he launched into the interview, the host made an observation that says a lot about where we’re at right now. “Lawyers don’t normally do talk shows,” the comedian told his guest. Avenatti’s reply? “I’m not your normal lawyer, I guess.” Further proof of that came later, when Avenatti dramatically revealed a new piece of evidence onstage.

It’s impossible to overstate the peculiarity of our national situation: Daniels, an adult-film actress, is suing the president in federal court so that she can be released from a non-disclosure agreement about an alleged affair, for which she received $130,000 in hush money. Trump has denied knowledge of the payment, but Rudy Giuliani, the newest member of Trump’s legal team, said Wednesday that the president had, in fact, reimbursed his lawyer, Michael Cohen, for the money he sent Daniels.

“It’s absurd to suggest that an attorney would advance $130,000 for somebody from a personal home-equity loan, never tell him about it—not just anyone, but a billionaire running for president—never seek reimbursement, never tell him about it,” Avenatti told Colbert. “It’s just absurd. It’s ridiculous. Nobody believes that.”

What if, Colbert wondered, they’re just a terrible attorney? “I would agree with you that he’s a terrible attorney,” Avenatti said. “But he’s not that stupid.”

“This is not your normal case, and it’s not your normal defendant,” Avenatti added. “I mean, you're dealing with a defendant that’s very undisciplined, can be easily baited into making mistakes. And I think we’ve been very, very successful in doing just that, and we’re gonna keep doing what we’re doing.”

Later, Avenatti unveiled a never-before-seen piece of evidence: a copy of an incoming wire receipt from Daniels’s prior counsel showing $130,000 coming from Essential Consultants—the company Cohen used to send payment to Daniels. And, as Avenatti pointed out, one crucial detail about the receipt could spell danger for Trump: the money came from First Republic Bank in San Francisco, California.

“There’s a certain attorney general in the state of California. You may have heard his name. His name’s Xavier Becerra. He’s not a big fan of the president. And this document may, in fact, give him jurisdiction over certain criminal acts associated with this payment. And, in fact, if the attorney general and the state of California were to bring charges, President Trump could not pardon Michael Cohen for those charges.”