One of the easiest things for people in authority to cop to when the sledding gets tough is being fallible. It humanizes these leaders, brings them a little closer to us, why it even has the distinctive evangelical -"I have sinned" kind of ring to it. This "glass house" defense works like a charm. These confirmation hearings are yet another Democratic exercise in futility, something the party could do en masse in a Saturday morning infomercial. The Futile Workout - and shrug your shoulders, one two, now wring your hands and three and four and point to the left, now point to the right, now curl into a ball, and cower and cower, now shake it off. With far bigger fish to fry, Bushco has us chasing the minnows.
Remember, the fish rots from head down.