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There’s only one thing more outrageous than the fact that some of the highest officials in government committed a flagrant breach of national security: It’s the possibility that President Donald J. Trump — the commander in chief — won’t hold a single one of them accountable.

And for all their harrumphing for the cameras, it appears just as likely that the Republicans who control both houses of Congress will bow to Mr. Trump’s will and, ultimately, sweep this atrocity under the proverbial rug.

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The game of political defense, apparently, takes precedence over the deadly serious business of national defense.

Unlike so many Washington scandals that rely on a dash or two of circumstantial evidence and huge helpings of speculation, in this case the facts are straightforward: A group of top defense, intelligence and White House officials used a commercial messaging app, Signal, to discuss details of a military attack on Houthi militants in Yemen who have been harassing ships in the Red Sea. That group included National Security Adviser Michael Waltz, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Vice President JD Vance, National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard and CIA Director John Ratcliffe.

That was sloppy and dangerous. But it gets worse: The editor-in-chief of The Atlantic magazine was inexplicably added to the chat,........

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