"Harmless" dirty old men

No!  Just, no.  You don't get to grope women just because you've passed a magic age barrier. Or been a military "hero".  Or any other reason.

Okay.  That's a good argument if true.  But it's not an excuse. He's not alone with these women when he's doing it.  If this is the case, he needs a minder.  Not an excuse.

There's No Such Thing as 'Good-Nature' Groping

True.  Not if it were a man. I sometimes wonder, however, if men don't see groping as a problem, because they would actually enjoy having the tables turned - if it were a woman groping their crotch.  Hey! What red-blooded male wouldn't like that?!  But not if she were doing it aggressively, of course.  That's a power problem.

This attempt at an apology (naturally addressed "to anyone he has offended") first emphasizes Bush's age and sickliness, which does provide context, but doesn't absolve him for his bad behavior. Nor does the explanation that, emphasis mine, "To try to put people at ease, the president routinely tells the same joke." That presumably refers to the alleged "David Cop-a-Feel" bit. But McGrath's use of "people" instead of "women" is curious because it's doubtful he's using the same material on the men he poses for photos with.

  Vice

Highly doubtful.  In fact, almost certain. And if he's still mentally capable enough to know the difference between a man and a woman, he's with it enough to understand, "Stop it, you old fuck."

With the flood of sexual harassment and assault allegations the Harvey Weinstein bombshell has wrought, it has become increasingly clear that one of the reasons men have gotten away with sexual abuse for actual millennia is because they don't understand that women's bodies are not theirs for the taking. They often don't consider that what to them is a harmless joke is actually a gross violation that makes women feel powerless.

To the contrary - that's what gives them the green light - men have power over women. Of course they know that.  They count on it.