(CNN) Sen. John Kennedy is the exception that proves the rule. Kennedy backed away from the absurd Trumpworld fantasy that has claimed the minds of so many of his Republican colleagues. Now, as he told CNN's Chris Cuomo, the senator from Louisiana accepts the truth that it was Russia that interfered in America's 2016 election.

"I was wrong," said Kennedy. "The only evidence I have, and I think it's overwhelming, is that it was Russia who tried to hack the DNC ... I've seen no indication that Ukraine tried to do it."

The reversal may indicate that Kennedy has a moral sensibility or is smart enough to see that his previous statement to Fox's Chris Wallace -- that no one knows who did the crime -- made him look ridiculous. Then again, his first claim was sure to reach (and please) the President's core supporters. Fox News viewers who nodded along aren't likely to learn of his new position, stated on CNN. Thus, the senator can have it both ways.

Kennedy's Russia-Ukraine dance reflects the larger closing of Republican minds to the damage wreaked by the President's campaign to destroy fact-based politics and public morality. One by one, many formerly respectable politicians have joined a cult devoted to Trump's conspiracy theories and self-serving claims.

The spectacle has become more pronounced of late, with the most craven example coming from former Texas governor and current secretary of energy Rick Perry, who called Trump "the chosen one" and explained that he's part of "God's plan for the people who rule and judge over us on this planet in our government."