In the days leading up to Cohen's plea, Trump's legal team had grown increasingly annoyed with the special counsel's office for stonewalling. Giuliani vented to a friend that Mueller's office stopped communicating with him after he delivered Trump's answers. "They've gone dark," the friend who spoke with Giuliani said. "Rudy is extremely frustrated. He thinks Mueller is acting like some junior U.S. attorney who's got his panties in a wad and doesn't want to talk to you." Giuliani also complained that Mueller is delaying submitting his report to the Justice Department until the Democrats have taken control of the House of Representatives in January. (Giuliani did not respond to a request for comment.)

Cohen's plea also re-ignited fears that the president's son, Don Jr., will be next to be indicted. "Don's been telling people he's very worried after today," a source said. (Don Jr.'s attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment.) Mueller now appears to be driving the West Wing agenda, with the principals in a reactive crouch; there's a sense of loss of control. "It's an untethered situation," a person close to the president said.