You wouldn’t know it from senators’ public pronouncements. After Corker tweeted on Sunday that the White House had been turned into “an adult day-care center,” most Republicans were silent — deciding to ride out this moment with the belief that it would fade away.

Their statements about the dispute have cited simple facts and avoided taking sides with either Trump or their Republican colleague from Tennessee. They do not intend to get drawn into the fight themselves, and there is no big wave of new GOP senators about to join Corker in his vast condemnation of the president.

Their goal? To avoid alienating Trump’s base ahead of the 2018 midterm elections — and to keep some hope alive that they can achieve a legislative victory before the end of the year.