The notion that Donald Trump’s presidency constitutes an open-ended, moment-to-moment crisis for the United States and the world is no longer a contested one. If there’s one thing his staunchest allies and opponents agree on, it’s that Trump is dangerous.

They promiscuously leak stories to the press suggesting that they think Trump’s tenure is a national emergency, and that they intend to do very little about it.

It speaks volumes about the precariousness of the situation that the most powerful senior officials in the executive branch, other than the president himself, spend so much of their time justifying their continued service, whispering soothing words to both themselves and to reporters.

Of course, it is not unusual for political aides to have second thoughts about their jobs or the agendas they work to advance, but it is extraordinary that members of this president’s braintrust say they’re sticking around only because they think they can save the president (and through him, all of us) from himself.

What Trump’s inner circle can’t seem to grasp is that the very reason they cite for their continued association with moral obscenity is the same one that ought to be convincing all of them to resign in spectacular fashion.