Forgive me for being impertinent, but I think it will be impossible to convince Republican activists and some conservative lawmakers that the House leadership’s protestations about separation of powers are really about separation of powers. If they cared passionately about that issue, they might consider doing something about it themselves. Congress could start by ending the longstanding practice of transferring clearly legislative (and judicial) powers to executive-branch regulatory agencies, a practice that is far more damaging to the republic than the FBI investigating congressional corruption.
No, what the whole episode looks like out in the hinterlands is an attempt to score points against a low-approval administration, to put distance between the president and the Republican Congress. That’s bad politics, among other things.