text: I detect a whiff of optimism in this column, but Sarah K. may have a point.  As things are going now, Trump's unhinged statements about white supremacists, etc., will make it more and more difficult for establishment Republicans to continue to tolerate / support him.  It is at least possible, if not likely, that the GOP will have to act---probably by impeaching Trump---before the 2020 election (and possibly before the 2018 mid-term congressional elections).  When this happens it's going to tear the Republican party apart as Trump's core supporters exact their revenge; which is precisely why it hasn't happened yet.
  
  Stay tuned.  This should be quite a show!