Yet the report, like previous investigations, offered no evidence that Clinton was aware of security concerns in Libya. Contrast the preparation for Obamacare, which was, or should have been, at the center of Sebelius’s concerns, with the issue of embassy security. That is certainly an important and tragically neglected topic, yet not one fair to tag Clinton with, given the array of issues on the secretarial plate.

Which brings us to Christie. The New Jersey governor acted quickly, at least once the incriminating e-mails were released, to dump the officials involved in blocking access lanes to the George Washington Bridge. He gets accountability points for that, even if it is simultaneously true that the dumping was to his political advantage. “I take this action today because it’s my job,” Christie said in announcing that he was firing his deputy chief of staff and cutting ties with his campaign manager. “I am responsible for what happened.”

Good for Christie. Where the governor loses a few points is in what he takes responsibility for. In Christie’s marathon news conference, he came off as more outraged at having been betrayed by his aides lying to him than by their thuggish conduct. It’s fair to wonder: Is he accountable for establishing an atmosphere in which underlings viewed such conduct as acceptable?