If he shot someone on Fifth Avenue...

Well, we really are at that phase of the Trump regime.

Lev Parnas went on Rachel Maddow's show last night (he'll be back for part two of the interview this evening) and spilled everything. Trump knew what Lev was doing. Pence knew. Barr knew. Pompeo knew. And Rudy was his case officer.

He tried to downplay the stalking of Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch, seeming to realize that was a step too far. But he laid out in detail the strong-arming of Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Military aid wasn't the only thing on the chopping block; all assistance to Ukraine hinged on Ukraine opening an investigation on Joe Biden.

Now, no, there is no honor among thieves. Parnas is a thug who is up to his neck in this conspiracy. But that's precisely why he should be believed.

Why is he doing this? Revenge? An appeal to a future Democratic administration's attorney general to take into account his cooperation? Certainly, telling all this to Bill Barr won't get him any brownie points. Going public is his only chance at leniency in the future, and survival in the present. (Stay away from open windows.)

The Parnas revelations further cement the wisdom of Nancy Pelosi sitting on the articles of impeachment. And now that Parnas has provided House investigators with a cache of evidence, that evidence will be used in the Senate trial, and there's nothing that Mitch McConnell can do about it.

Of course, Donald Trump won't be removed from office. The GOP is too far gone for that. It is now a fascist party centered on a doddering fool as fuhrer. But more evidence will come out. Voters will become more disgusted. November will be a bloodbath for the GOP outside of its core areas.

Parnas will spill more tonight. Expect even more outrageous revelations. Stay tuned.