Chain of command

What is telling and chilling about this, is that all the way through these shenaningans, the instinct of these people is not to warn him, report to him or advise him directly on their concerns. It is to run to either their friends in the Deep State or the Democrat Party and plot and conspire and work to undermine him. It started with the lack of a routine defensive brief for Trump about avoiding Russian contacts, then  it continues with the "partial briefing" by Comey of Trump on the Steele Dossier, and his authority is to this day and ongoing is ignored and shown contempt by them in this tempest in a teapot over the call. Not one of them bothered to talk to him or advise him on any of these matters at any time. Instead, they lie in wait for the time they can say "gotcha" about this POTUS that they, almost as much as the Dems if not more, want out. 

Think Captain Queeg. Even if the commander in chief is really inappropriate or incompetent, you are the more negligent for  not trying to help him stop or be better. And, indeed, a Republican just tried to ask Colonel Vindman who he ultimately reports to in the chain of command and his lawyer refused to let him answer. Christ! He got his commission from the POTUS. He should not have waited for the lawyer to talk. He should have grabbed the mike and said, "Why, the POTUS, of course, our C-in-C!" That he did not is the sort of scary thing that makes 7 Days in May look like a quaint and implausible fable. In the words of the Liberal Democrat Peacenik Detente President that was the target of the Generals' coup in that book/movie, "If you don't like my policy, don't try a coup, run for election!" (and yet this POTUS is actually carrying out the policy of support for the Ukraine they wanted!)