As we know, politicians in trouble take full responsibility for things their associates do, as long as "full responsibility" doesn't include any of that other "-bility," LIAbility.
So we have now seen the spectacle of Chris Christie "taking responsibility" for what his aides did while close enough for him to hit them with spitwads, but without his knowledge. Just a funny little plot the gang cooked up to tweak the boss. Gotta be the best, most complex practical joke that ever wasted taxpayer funds.
So he is a victim, but responsible? That seems like a contradiction, but it has a historical precedent. Any other nutwingers "take responsibility" for heinous acts as long as there were no consequences.
Step over the steaming pile, if you wish.
Well, there was Dick Cheney. He shot his friend in the face, and waited until he sobered up to talk to the police. The friend who received the face full of buckshot later apologized to Mr. Cheney for standing in front of his duck.
George W. Bush "took full responsibility" for the failed response to Hurricane Katrina There is no evidence that he lost any sleep as a consequence.
Ronald Reagan took responsibility for the 241 Marines killed in Beiruit, and for Iran-Contra, as long as there were no, ya know, PENALTIES attached. Of course there were not. Reagan was like your dotty old uncle who doesn't really know what he is doing when he flashes the schoolkids, so we forgave him.
"First, let me say I take full responsibility for my own actions and for those of my administration. As angry as I may be about activities undertaken without my knowledge, I am still accountable for those activities. As disappointed as I may be in some who served me, I'm still the one who must answer to the American people for this behavior."
I guess that was the "answer to the American people." Next question?
Richard Nixon took full responsibility for the events of Watergate more than a year before any consequences arrived. He was going to get to the bottom of it, by golly.
One man who understood what responsibility meant was Dwight D. Eisenhower, tasked with pulling the trigger on the most complex military action in history, and forced to do so while hoping for a break in the weather. On the eve of the battle he composed a note accepting the consequences of failure and defining "responsibility."
Our landings in the Cherbourg-Havre area have failed to gain a satisfactory foothold and I have withdrawn the troops. My decision to attack at this time and place was based on the best information available. The troops, the air and the Navy did all that bravery and devotion to duty could do. If any blame or fault attaches to the attempt, it is mine alone.