Donald Trump is not a Republican. Forgive me for stating the obvious. But for conservatives, affirming these small but serious truths has become an important step on the road to recovery in a post-fact world.

After the convention last July, when Donald Trump was officially named the Republican candidate for the presidency, it was decided that he must be a Republican because he had won the party’s nominating contest. Never mind that this is the sort of logic through which one could drive an eighteen-wheeler – it was our job to keep the ship on an even keel.

Even now, many Republicans are still valiantly attempting to make a success of his presidency, despite the president’s best efforts to thwart them. But after a summer of unforced errors, leaks, and high-profile staff departures, the underlying problem for the president’s agenda has become too enormous to ignore: he is a man without a party.