Most other Republicans have kept quiet. Who wants to make an enemy of the White House, Fox News, Rush Limbaugh, and those in the GOP base who believe Trump can do no wrong?

But if Trump or Whitaker takes steps to impede the Mueller investigation or fights to prevent House Democrats, with their new subpoena power, from delving into matters Trump would like to keep secret, elected Republicans won’t be able to avoid taking a position forever.

They will have to choose between angering the president and his populist backers and becoming complicit in whatever Trump is hiding, knowing that the president seldom stays loyal to anyone for very long, and that if and when the truth comes out, the public will rightfully hold them accountable if they helped conceal illegal or flagrantly immoral behavior.