“There is a quiet resistance within the administration of people choosing to put country first,” writes the author, wrapping in treacly cliches of patriotism the bald fact that a duly elected president is being undermined by his own staff.

Exactly the same sort of thing, albeit in softer form, could be said about any White House. There are always factions and cross-currents. How many members of George W. Bush’s administration, for instance, really gave a shit about their boss’ desire after re-election to enact immigration and Social Security reform? Zero. The Obama White House was riven by differences over health-care plans and foreign-policy disputes as well. Read any history of the Reagan years and you’ll find that it was amazing that anything ever got done given all the in-fighting. Bill Clinton actually had officials resign over policy differences. It’s patently absurd to elevate frictions within the Trump White House to an existential threat to the Republic. In fact, it’s the sort of overstatement that is worthy of, well, Donald Trump, who just doesn’t do nuance.