And regardless of how many people will realize it, the increasingly obvious fact is that America is now ruled by some of its least moral individuals. In addition to being repugnant, that should be a source of worry. Norms provide a guardrail on policy — leaders often shy away from doing extremist things like throwing critics in prison, cracking down violently on protests, or interfering with elections because of norms. When you know your leaders are people who don’t have those guardrails, the risk that you’ll end up with a destructive, extremist policy are simply higher.

But if there’s one silver lining here, it’s that the Zelensky meeting was not a smooth display of competence on Trump’s part. The spectacle of Trump and his lackeys shouting threats and demands at an earnest little guy whose country is being invaded and destroyed was not a P.R. coup for the administration. It displayed an instinctive, overly aggressive, ham-handed approach — the attitude of a bunch of people drunk on their own power, feeling untouchable enough to have a little fun pushing a foreign leader around on live TV.