BuzzFeed’s extraordinary report last night suggests that President Trump conspired to induce perjury and obstruct justice. It has excited many Democrats. But even if BuzzFeed is correct in its central assertion — that two federal law enforcement sources say Trump told his former attorney, Michael Cohen, to lie to Congress — I’m not convinced it’s a major problem for the president. Unless, that is, law enforcement has audio recordings of Trump or his most inner circle speaking to that effect.

The key here is the burden of proof. According to BuzzFeed, he “personally instructed [Cohen] to lie” to Congress about when the Trump organization ended its effort to build a hotel in Moscow. If this is true, Trump would appear to be guilty of at least three federal criminal offenses: obstruction of justice, perjury, and conspiracy.