It’s easy for the media to be transfixed by Donald Trump, the man. His behavior. His policy. His style. Washington is still abuzz over his decision to fire FBI Director James Comey. Once again, he was doing something unusual.

But that fixation on personality can miss important points. Yes, President Trump is a unique character. But he’s also a product of his times. Yes, in firing Mr. Comey, Mr. Trump went against traditional norms of presidential behavior. But politics over the past decade or more has been all about rewriting norms, from impeaching presidents to yelling “you lie” at a State of the Union address.

One political expert told The Atlantic magazine that two key norms uphold a robust democracy: not abusing the power of the majority and not delegitimizing your opposition. Both those norms were under strain before Trump entered the White House. So upholding them means not just pointing the finger at a person, but also looking at deeper threads in thought and society that need leavening.