But while it remains unlikely that congressional Republicans would kick Trump out of the Oval Office, the notion isn’t as far-fetched as it seemed just a couple of weeks ago. Trump’s abrupt firing of FBI Director James Comey—and the rapidly escalating scandal that followed—has not only opened him up to potential obstruction of justice charges, it has left the lawmakers in his party feeling besieged. After months of being forced to comment on the near-daily controversies brought on by the president, they are fatigued, exasperated, bitter.

“Can we have a crisis-free day?” Senator Susan Collins complained to reporters earlier this week. “That’s all I’m asking.”

“I think we could do with a little less drama from the White House on a lot of things so that we can focus on our agenda,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell similarly grumbled.

If the current controversy surrounding Trump ends up derailing this year’s legislative agenda (as many are now predicting it will), some Republicans may begin to wonder why exactly they’re still putting up with this president—especially when they view virtually every other person in the line of succession as an improvement. One senior GOP congressional aide told me it’s “still too early to tell” whether impeachment is a viable option in this Congress, saying that much of it would depend on what kind of dirt emerges from the Russia investigation. He added, though, that reelection fears could also shift the dynamic quickly. “If the GOP loses the Montana and Georgia special elections, then that would make people more open to [impeachment].”

Another Republican, meanwhile, floated the idea that if Democrats take back the House in 2018, GOP leadership could bring articles of impeachment during the lame-duck session—giving the proceedings an air of bipartisanship (and perhaps redeeming their own reputations along the way). Ultimately, though, the prospects of impeachment largely depend on Democrats successfully taking back the House next year.

Trump Resigns

In an unusually candid interview with Reuters last month, Trump celebrated his first 100 days in office by indulging in a moment of wistfulness. “I loved my previous life,” he said. “I had so many things going. This is more work than in my previous life. I thought it would be easier.”

The quote seemed to confirm what every other pathos-laden inside-the-White-House dispatch has suggested: Trump is having a miserable time as president.

His unhappiness would make sense. Trump is, in some ways, an accidental president. For decades he flirted with a presidential bid, but never intended to pull the trigger; then he did launch a campaign, but planned to drop out after a few months; then he ended up winning the Republican nomination, but expected to lose the general election; then the returns started coming in on election night, and before he knew it he was delivering a surprise victory speech in the New York Hilton ballroom. And it’s been all downhill from there.