It’s easy to argue that James Comey deserved to be fired, but the FBI Director didn’t deserve to be terminated in the clumsy, abrupt way that he was. General Michael Flynn, accused of far more flagrant misdeeds, got to resign his post as National Security Advisor, but the President never requested Comey’s resignation, or even informed him that his termination was imminent.

Moreover, there’s no logic or credibility to official claims that the President had to dismiss the director immediately due to his inappropriately harsh treatment of Hillary and her e-mails some ten months ago—treatment candidate Trump applauded at the time. Comey could have departed with a dignified Rose Garden ceremony that simultaneously introduced his worthy replacement. As it was, the awful implementation of the President’s fateful decision only harmed his presidency’s worthy goals and underlined the need for upgrades in the White House staff to give Trump the savvy, professional help that HE deserves.