As Trump’s stonewalling fails, he is adding co-conspirators to his obstruction. And unlike Trump, they don’t enjoy immunity from prosecution while in office.

• Trump got White House counsel Pat Cipollone to draft a letter purporting to provide a legal justification for defying Congress’ requests and subpoenas in the House impeachment inquiry. But lawyers know a White House press release — and obstruction — when they see it.
• Trump got Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to issue an edict barring State Department officials at the center of the Ukraine scandal from appearing before Congress. But several of them showed up to give damning testimony anyway.
• Trump keeps attacking the whistleblower. But evidence proving the truth of every claim in the whistleblower’s complaint has now become so overwhelming that the whistleblower’s testimony isn’t even necessary. Shooting the messenger was never a winning long-run strategy.

And two of Giuliani’s associates — Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman — have earned the newest name tab on the Trump-Russia Timeline. Last week, they were indicted on charges that go to a central issue in the Trump-Ukraine impeachment inquiry: Along with Giuliani, they were trying to get the US ambassador to Ukraine fired and, eventually, accomplished that mission: “Trump’s Newest Bagmen? Follow the Money.”

It’s not easy keeping up with the pace of key developments. But whenever you get lost in the Trump maze, apply this simple rule: “It Always Comes Back to Russia.” Then ask this question:

On what issue has Trump ever diverged from what Putin would have wanted — or done himself as President of the United States?

Good luck finding one.

Here is a list of the latest update to the Trump-Russia Timeline at Dan Rather’s News & Guts and Just Security:

LATE 1980s: Parnas Works For Fred Trump 

APR. 20, 2012: Ivanka Trump Celebrates Opening Trump Tower-Istanbul

SOMETIME IN 2016: Parnas and Giuliani Meet 

LATE OCTOBER 2016: Parnas Contributes to Trump Campaign

REVISED: NOV. 8, 2016: Sater and Parnas Reportedly Attend Trump VIP Election Celebration

MARCH 2018: Fruman Attends RNC Fundraiser at Mar-a-Lago

MAY 1, 2018:  Parnas and Fruman Have Dinner With Trump; Donate Money to GOP Congressman in Effort to Get US Ambassador to Ukraine Removed

MAY 11, 2018: Sessions Sends Letter to Pompeo About Yovanovitch

MAY 17, 2018: Parnas and Fruman Make Allegedly Illegal Contributions to Trump Super PAC

MARCH 2019: Parnas, Fruman, and Guiliani Together in Washington 

EARLY MARCH 2019: State Department Asks Yovanovitch to Remain Until 2020

EARLY MARCH 2019: Parnas and Fruman Pursue Naftogaz Plan, Say Trump Plans to Replace Yovanovitch

REVISED: APR. 21, 2019: Zelensky Wins Ukraine Presidential Election; Trump Urges Him to Work With Giuliani on ‘Corruption’

LATE APRIL 2019: Yovanovitch Summoned to Return to Washington “On The Next Plane”

REVISED: PRIOR TO JULY 18, 2019: Trump Orders Hold on Previously Authorized Military Aid to Ukraine

JULY 26, 2019: Future Whistleblower Writes Memo of July 25 Call

SEPT. 20, 2019: Parnas and Giuliani Together at Trump Hotel in DC

SEPT. 26, 2019: Two Giuliani Business Associates Claim to Have Alleged Wrongdoing on Biden That They Gave to Giuliani

OCT. 3-8, 2019: Dowd Represents Two Giuliani Associates; They Won’t Comply With House Request for Documents and Depositions

OCT. 6, 2019: Trump Orders US Withdrawal From Syria 

OCT. 7, 2019: House Subpoenas Documents from Pentagon and OMB 

OCT. 8-10, 2019: White House Blocks Sondland’s House Testimony; House Issues Subpoena

OCT. 8, 2019: Senate Intel Committee Issues Report on Russian Measures to Help Trump and Hurt Clinton

OCT. 8, 2019: White House Stonewalls

OCT. 9, 2019: Trump Has Attacked Whistleblower At Least 44 Times

OCT. 9-10, 2019: Two Giuliani Associates Arrested, Had Sought Removal of US Ambassador to Ukraine; House Issues Subpoenas

OCT. 10, 2019: House Subpoenas Perry

OCT. 10, 2019: Pompeo’s Senior Adviser Resigns

OCT. 10, 2019: Trump Says He Doesn’t Know Parnas and Fruman, Hopes Giuliani Doesn’t Get Indicted

OCT 11, 2019: Sondland Says He Will Testify

OCT. 11, 2019: Yovanovitch Testifies Before Congress

OCT. 11, 2019: Giuliani Under Federal Investigation