The 21st century equivalent of an “indulgence”, and therefore not a heartfelt gesture. This was a “liberal apology” i.e. an admission that he’s sorry he got caught doing something bad (not that he’s sorry he did it, just sorry someone found out), and thinks this will make everything “all better”, like buying “carbon credits” somehow magically erases a lib’s 21st-century lifestyle “excesses”.
A lot quicker and less inconvenient than actually living one’s sins down.