"Darkness Falling"

Trump's RussiaGate problems are deeper than ever after another dramatic week in the Robert Mueller probe, and even his closest allies are worried.

Trump has become increasingly enraged after a week in which his former personal attorney Michael Cohen pleaded guilty to lying to Congress.

Mueller also voided a cooperation agreement with Paul Manafort. And the conspiracy theorist Jerome Corsi publicized a draft plea agreement with Mueller, even as he rejected that deal.

"It is something that has again taken the president way off message, and it creates a sense of political doom or disaster," said one Republican strategist. "It's hard to tell what you're dealing with - until you actually have charges [filed]."

The Cohen deal is most troubling for Trump, given that his former fixer is now acknowledging that talks about building a Trump Tower in Moscow went on for months longer than he had originally stated.

Cohen says the proposed project was only abandoned when Trump was assured of the GOP presidential nomination. Cohen had earlier said that the deal had been shelved in January 2016, before the first GOP caucuses were held in Iowa.

Trump had "informal conversations" with Putin at a dinner on Friday evening in Buenos Aires, according to White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders.

One concern to the trumpster in the dumpster is the secrecy with which Mueller works, a pattern that causes new bombshells to land without warning.

Another is the possibility of the Trump family showing up in the new legal filings in the Cohen case.

A third concern is the incoming Congress where Democrats will take control of the House of Representatives, with the ability to set the agenda and subpoena witnesses.

Referring to the new Democratic-led House, the GOP strategist with White House ties said: "It's a huge problem. I don't think [Trump] really understands what is coming at him... He is used to dealing with "his message today is not the reality a few months ahead."

Trump, his immediate circle, and some of his allies are publicly acting confident.

Rudy Giuliani has insisted that there is no contradiction between Cohen's current story and the version of events provided by the president.

Roger Stone, the longtime Trump ally and Nixon Republican dirty trickster, has come under scrutiny over leaked documents, insisted again to The Hill that he had done nothing wrong.

Asked if he had ever discussed WikiLeaks with Trump, Stone replied, "Never. On no occasion - as I said on 'Meet the Press,' and as I have said under oath. Never - and the government has presented no evidence to the contrary."

Trump himself has repeatedly lashed out at Mueller's probe as a "witch hunt."

He said that he had continued to run his business while seeking the presidency - "very legal & very cool," he asserted - and added that he had "Lightly looked at doing a building somewhere in Russia."

The tone of the president's tweets have sparked speculation that he is feeling much greater pressure than before.

Mark Zaid, a D.C.-based attorney said that while it was clear the stress and pressure on Trump was increasing, it was important to keep in mind "that does not necessarily equate to criminal culpability."

Zaid added, however, that the outlook for Trump is becoming much bleaker all the time.

"I would say with every close confidant who goes down in flames - as we have seen now on multiple occasions - the waters surrounding Trump get deeper," Zaid said. "The question, of course, is will he drown?"