It’s been a busy few days of self-flagellation for PM Kevin Rudd, from the demotion of Peter Garrett to his appearance yesterday on Insiders. He’s “doing a Beattie” as the Queenslanders say, acknowledging that his government has made mistakes in a wide number of areas and failed to deliver on key promises, but apologising and promising to work harder.

Kevin Rudd said “I’m sure we’ll take an even bigger whacking in the period ahead and the bottom line is I think we deserve it, both not just in terms of recent events but more broadly. We’re taking a pounding because we haven’t been up to the mark.”

What risks does Rudd’s mea-culpa carry? Here’s what the pundits say:

The Age

Michelle Grattan: PM bares himself for a flogging, and may get it

Leaving aside insulation, there is a danger in talking up the government’s failings. Some voters who have been satisfied might think that if the PM believes they should give it a whack, perhaps they should.

Sydney Morning Herald

Phillip Coorey: Rudd’s humble pie leaves a bad taste

The government had tried to do too much. Its achievements had been lost, its mistakes accentuated and voters had not noticed any tangible impact on their lives.

Herald Sun

Laurie Oakes: Decisive Rudd to atone for failures

Rudd has promised to improve his communications skills, but recognises it will not be easy to shed his eye-glazing “wall of sound” technique.

The Australian

Dennis Shanahan: Kevin Rudd’s mea culpa carries risks

It is the end of a state of denial about Rudd’s public support, his management style and his priorities.

Glenn Milne: Seeing through a poor performance

Which raises an interesting question in itself; if Rudd is now admitting that Garrett’s maladministration is actually his fault why hasn’t he put himself in charge of fixing it? Another expression, this time not Latin and distinctly more contemporary and potentially applied to Combet comes to mind: fall guy.

Editorial: Kevin Rudd’s mea culpa should be a turning point

Many who meet Mr Rudd are amazed at his command of detail on a broad range of issues. This partly reflects his intellect, but it could also be a sign that he has acted too much like a national premier rather than the Prime Minister and is overly focused on the minutiae of government and not enough on the big picture.

ABC

Fran Kelly: Is this the end of Prime Ministerial Blah Blah?

But you can throw all the money you like at a problem and it won’t help unless you can persuade people that what you’re doing will be effective.