Gail Collins: Bret, in these troubled times, I find it soothing that we can agree so often. Whatever the issue — British elections, congressional stalemate, Comey hearings — we can come together and blame Donald Trump.

Bret Stephens: I agree: We agree too much. So let me say that I find this liberal beatification of Jim Comey to be a little, er, opportunistic. Back in early November, Comey was the guy who had “an unquenchable thirst for the spotlight” and was guilty of an “astounding act” that “was a deplorable and reckless dereliction of duty” — and that was just Katrina vanden Heuvel’s opinion, in a column last November called “A Dirty Trick That Won’t Change the Outcome.”

But now liberals are treating him as a patriot of unimpeachable integrity and judgment. What gives?

Gail: Trump! Anybody who followed Comey through his Bush-era heroics, his destruction of Hillary and now this new incarnation should realize that he has a huge ego and a stupendous instinct for self-preservation. If I was president, my plan would be to flatter him delicately, asking for his opinion on law enforcement policy (like Obama did) and steer very, very clear of doing anything that would make him feel threatened.

The amazing thing about this latest story is that Trump never took the time to figure Comey out — the person with perhaps the most capacity in all Washington to do him harm. Once again we see that this alleged dealmaker isn’t even as crafty as your average entry level secretary.