Details are clear. Dui, reckless driving. Pled guilty. No re occurance. Came back up when he ran for Congress. Lies about it. Comes up again, with receipts when he runs for Governor. This time has to own it. Still gets elected. Now on the national stage, has to own it for a new batch of voters.
So he owns, makes a clear statement of doing so, adds to his sober "Narrative" (Because Dems have those too!) And moves on.
Doing anything else, whether cover up, or not being clear, says to people maybe he isn't as sorry as he claims.
Which isn't good for credibility, is it?