Quote:

Politicians are seen as weak when they repudiate their actions, hence the conventional wisdom is to tough it out rather than admit a mistake.



I don't know about that. I think Clinton looked worse when he said "I didn't inhale." And I voted for him twice.

To me, it seems contextual. If you make a habit of it, you'd (rightly) be perceived as a chronic flip-flopper. But if he came out and said something to the effect of "The fund raiser occurred in 1995, six years before he said he 'didn't regret ' the bombings. I condemn those remarks, etc..." I people would be more understanding, and this wouldn't be as big of an issue.