This is not a full-fledged mea culpa. But by presidential standards, it's there, or pretty close to it, ... The government did screw up, and he is president of the United States.
Even in this context, I am not going to get too uptight about it. When (officials such as Griffin) make statements that can be interpreted as political statements, the government should not be underwriting it. You just caught the fellow with a little egg on his vest, looking untidy.