Is this the beginning of the end?

1. What do you think was the most significant thing that happened this week?

TIME magazine's striking new cover, just out on Thursday, says it all. The animation shows the White House morphing into the Kremlin amid the swirl of Russia-related controversies, brewing for months, that boiled over and engulfed the Trump administration this week. The US is hardly the only country whose government is mired in turmoil (Brazil and Venezuela are just two others). The week also saw several events with wider implications beyond the headlines - like the European Court of Justice's ruling on EU trade pacts; Beijing's advancing its globalist ambitions with a big 'One Belt, One Road' summit. But, for sheer immediate drama and impact - US stocks posted their biggest loss in eight months on Wednesday on fears about policy gridlock in Washington; investors in Asia followed suit - it was the escalation of scandal in Washington to "Watergate size and scale" that took the limelight.

2. Why is this a big deal?