As Conor Friedersdorf writes, we are closing in on a series of moments when Trump is going to expect Republican officials and members of Congress to endorse the concept that he and his aides and family cannot be investigated or held accountable for any infractions of the law. He's just short of saying "I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody and Congress would let me get away with it!"
Call me a cockeyed optimist but we've just had an election which has shown that the backing of Trump is a liability in some areas for those running for office or another term. I'm thinking there are some Republicans who are going to think what Trump is angling for is going too far. Remember they're kind of being asked to protect Trump from criminal prosecution when they don't know what crimes he may have committed which may come out later. A lot of Republican Senators and Congressfolks during Watergate were leery of protecting Nixon for that reason.
And there have got to be some current Republican leaders who are thinking there could be a big opening to run for President in 2020 if Trump is too mired in scandal to run or there's a sizeable G.O.P. movement out there to get a guy who'll advance their agenda without all the scandal Donald brings to the party. You couldn't take advantage of that opportunity if you'd voted to shield him from the law.
At least, I hope someone's thinking like that.