Stupidity, paranoia, malevolence — it’s hard to distinguish among competing explanations for the behavior of people in this administration. In the case of Mr. Kushner’s meeting with Sergey Kislyak, the ambassador, and his meeting that month with Sergey Gorkov, a Russian banker with close ties to the Kremlin and Russian intelligence, even the most benign of the various working theories suggests that Mr. Kushner, who had no experience in politics or diplomacy before Mr. Trump’s campaign, is in way over his head…

Democrats in Congress are calling for Mr. Kushner’s security clearance to be suspended or revoked, which seems reasonable enough, but also like a distraction from the main question: What is Mr. Kushner doing in this job? He has told friends that he and his wife, Ivanka Trump, will regularly re-evaluate whether to return to their natural habitat among New York City’s real estate and social elites. Given Mr. Trump’s clannish reflexes and obsession with loyalty, he is unlikely to encourage such a move, but he should, in his own interest as well as the public’s. His son-in-law, a man he won’t fire, his closest and perhaps most influential confidant and executive, is already struggling with his role — and is now dealing with the distraction of an active investigation. No other White House — no business, except maybe a wholly owned and rather tawdry and occasionally bankrupt casino operation — would be run this way.