(CNN) President Donald Trump has spent much of the last year running down special counsel Robert Mueller's ongoing investigation into Russia's attempted interference in the 2016 election.

But his past rhetoric belies that "fact." Simply put: Trump has engaged in an aggressive effort to discredit Mueller, his team and the investigation more broadly.

On Friday, that effort got even more difficult. Rick Gates, Trump's one-time deputy campaign chairman, pleaded guilty to two criminal charges and agreed to cooperate with Mueller's broader investigation.

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