Let's just stop and think a minute. Do you really believe anyone's going to arm teachers -- or pay to arm teachers? There's a snowball's chance in hell. Not gonna happen, as George H.W. Bush used to say.

So why did Trump bring up this silly NRA talking point? To change the subject.

Because a day that Sarah Huckabee Sanders isn't being barraged with questions about the latest Mueller indictments is a good day for the White House -- especially since the latest counts are for acts committed while Paul Manafort and Rick Gates were working for the Trump campaign.

So let's talk about those latest indictments. It's a lot more suspenseful than The Bachelor, amirite?

We have Trump's former campaign director trying to decide if he'll cooperate with Mueller and face the very real possibility of a cup of Russian polonium tea, or take his chances, stonewall the investigation, and spend the rest of his life in prison. (Remember, he can't count on a presidential pardon, since he also evaded taxes in state jurisdictions.)

He doesn't have great choices. Plastic surgery and the witness protection program? OR wishful thinking?

Despite concerns yesterday that he refused to cooperate, the New York Times reports this morning that Rick Gates will plead guilty:

WASHINGTON — A former top adviser to Donald J. Trump’s presidential campaign indicted by the special counsel was expected to plead guilty as soon as Friday afternoon, according to two people familiar with his plea agreement, a move that signals he is cooperating with the investigation into Russia’s interference in the 2016 election.

The adviser, Rick Gates, is a longtime political consultant who once served as Mr. Trump’s deputy campaign chairman. The plea deal could be a significant development in the investigation — a sign that Mr. Gates plans to offer incriminating information against his longtime associate and the former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, or other members of the Trump campaign in exchange for a lighter punishment.

The deal comes as the special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III, has been raising pressure on Mr. Gates and Mr. Manafort with dozens of new charges of money laundering and bank fraud that were unsealed on Thursday. Mr. Mueller first indicted both men in October, and both pleaded not guilty.

This is the real story. Don't be distracted by smoke screens!