Political gaffes come in all shapes and sizes -- ranging from the benign to the malignant.

Who could forget former Senator, Trent Lott's melancholy longing for segregation redux or George Allen's "macaca" statement?

Sometimes the gaffe of honesty can be a candidate's undoing. Walter Mondale promised to raise taxes during his 1984 presidential debate against Ronald Reagan.

Then there are some gaffes for which no explanation is possible like then candidate George W. Bush on Social Security in 2000: "They want the federal government controlling Social Security like it's some kind of federal program."

This brings us to Hillary Clinton's recent faux pas that led some to believe she was staying in the race in case Barack Obama was assassinated. This seems to me the most ghoulish of possibilities. And not even my acknowledged political cynicism will allow me to entertain this notion.

Clinton told the Argus Leader in South Dakota that it is wrong for others to urge her to quit the Democratic race, given that previous primaries have lasted into the summer. Citing her husband's campaign in 1992, and the race in 1968, she said, "We all remember Bobby Kennedy was assassinated in June in California."

The initial problem with Clinton's statement is her recollection of history is wrong and misleading. It assumes the 1968 and 1992 primaries began in January like the current one. The 1992 New Hampshire primary was not held until February 18. The 1968 New Hampshire Primary was held on March 12; and Bobby Kennedy did not enter the 1968 presidential race until March 16.

The best-case scenario that can be offered was Clinton used a poorly chosen non sequitur to justify staying in the race.

For many Obama supporters this was the smoking gun they had been looking for to assume the role of Frankie Pentangles, who said to Michael Corleone in Godfather II, "Let's hit em now, while we got the muscle."

Clinton was also criticized for offering a "non apology" apology, claiming Sen. Edward Kennedy's recent grim medical diagnosis was the probable reason for her regurgitating the assassination of Bobby Kennedy. Obama supporters were quick to note she failed to mention Obama by name in her pseudo apology.

Here, I am in total agreement. However, it was not Barack who should have been the recipient of Clinton's apology, but rather his wife Michelle and their two daughters. Clinton's failure, as a mother and wife of a presidential candidate herself, to publicly acknowledge the potential ramification of her words is cause for concern.

The fact that her statements, rightly or wrongly, were construed in such a way that Michelle Obama could be placed in a tragic scenario that would remind the nation of the black white photos of Jackie Kennedy dressed in black standing solemnly with her two young children as her husband, her children's father, passed by in a flag draped coffin was more than enough to warrant a direct mea culpa.

The problem is not the gaffe. Clinton is certainly not alone in this department. Both Obama and Sen. McCain are guilty of similar infractions.

Moreover, we must be careful not to create a climate that demands candidates be mistake free. This would only decrease the possibility of candidates and/or elected officials tackling serious issues forthrightly.

The problem is a question of leadership; it is Clinton's inability to admit fault. From the lead up to the war in Iraq to her less than accurate description of her landing in Bosnia, Clinton has demonstrated an unwillingness to take responsibility even when the truth lies blatantly in stark contrast to her alternate reality. How does this characteristic differ from the present administration?

Hard to pick someone like that as a running mate when you're mantra is change.

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