David Frum retweeted, is by the editor of the National Journal (highly respected non-partisan publication for beltway types)

It is chilling to watch the grins and applause of current law enforcement officials as they agree with Trump’s rant about the NYT op-ed. Why should we trust these law enforcement officials?

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=MsXGsqNYpuA

Vox's Dara Lind has put out a fairly long article on it all, the whodunnit, ramifications, what ifs....etc.

Lawrence O'Donnell live right now on his MSNBC show argued strongly for a good few minutes that it must be D.N.I. Dan Coats, finally inspired to act after doing some things in public already, to do something more blatant, anything, after going through the death and funeral of his "good friend" John McCain.

He just had a guest agree with him.

I actually found it enjoyable to get a little taste of the Hannity pushback show by watching a few seconds of this segment this evening. And then there's that words fail me once I saw the guest and heard her talk:

Exclusive: Snakes Everywhere:

What ever one thinks about this so called "resistance" fighter's actions that Trump isn't firing them means there's two possibilities one must face. Either Trump knows he engages in wild unhinged rants and gives orders he later regrets so he doesn't mind that his officials ignore them. Or he doesn't remember giving certain orders and is unaware people in his administration are ignoring them.

eta: Brinkley, the historian, said the most analogous example of disloyalty and advisers disregarding the president’s wishes was in Richard Nixon’s final year as president. He explained that Nixon would “bark crazy orders” to aides that they intentionally disregarded.

I found it helpful to re-read the piece after so much input from others, which always ends up taking one's mind on tangents.

I noted something I hadn't before, that there are three embedded links.

This

That is why many Trump appointees have vowed to do what we can to preserve our democratic institutions while thwarting Mr. Trump’s more misguided impulses until he is out of office.

That is to Jim Mattis Compared Trump to ‘Fifth or Sixth Grader,’ Bob Woodward Says in Book by Landler & Haberman, Sept. 4

And this

On Russia, for instance, the president was reluctant to expel so many of Mr. Putin’s spies as punishment for the poisoning of a former Russian spy in Britain.

which is to a March 26 Times piece, Trump and Western Allies Expel Scores of Russians in Sweeping Rebuke Over U.K. Poisoning

And then at the end, there is the link to McCain's farewell letter:

Senator John McCain put it best in his farewell letter. All Americans should heed his words and break free of the tribalism trap, with the high aim of uniting through our shared values and love of this great nation.

I think these two quotes are key to the message the writer is trying to send

It may be cold comfort in this chaotic era, but Americans should know that there are adults in the room. We fully recognize what is happening. And we are trying to do what’s right even when Donald Trump won’t.

The result is a two-track presidency.

This isn’t the work of the so-called deep state. It’s the work of the steady state.

Among other things, I think it's saying to conservative Republicans: not to worry, ignore it when he goes off on the silly childish nonsense, the administration does It's kind of like McCain's big speech when he returned to the Senate for the health care vote: stop listening to the loud mouths on the radio and get back to work and regular order and let's get some things done. Writer is saying they do that ignoring already and are getting things done, don't be distracted by all the Trump/Hannity agitpop, ignore the 5th grader, the executive branch is basically running as if Pence were the president.

also earlier Radosh tweeted this Slate piece by William Saletan suggesting Jon Huntsman:

FWIW, Bill Kristol agrees with Saletan.