One metric for how comically bad things are getting is when a serious, venerable newsman-type gets fed up. There are few more venerable or serious—apart from on New Year's Eve—than Anderson Cooper, who has kept a straight face for years as the Republicans who trundled into his studio slipped further and further into fact-free phantasmagoria. But this week of weeks proved too much for even stoic AC to put up with, as Donald Trump's web of lies around the hush-money payments his lawyer, Michael Cohen, made to his alleged mistresses was torn asunder by a series of court filings from federal prosecutors.

Cooper laid waste to Trump and his administration Wednesday night for their relentless, shameless lying on the issue.

"A straight-up denial," said Cooper, and "just a straight-up lie."

Never forget that Trump used to just flat-out deny any of this ever happened—one or more of the 5,000-plus false claims he has made to the American public he theoretically serves. He denied the affairs. He denied any knowledge of the payments. Then he denied any involvement. Cohen denied Trump ever reimbursed him. Then, as Cooper pointed out, Rudy Giuliani went on Fox News and said outright that Trump knew about the payments and reimbursed Cohen—choosing, as any good lawyer or public relations professional would, to say his boss "funneled" the money. You know, like upstanding citizens do. Now Trump happily says publicly that it was a "simple, private transaction." What? I thought it never happened?