Everyone who dabbles in rhetoric wants to look righteous, noble, and especially "right". They'd do anything to reach that goal, of looking like saints, benevolent rulers, and philosopher kings. However, the more they try to reach that goal, the more ethos, or trust is lost. Why? Because there's a ceiling based entirely on the context of the situation, and the more you try to insert how virtuous you are into the rhetorical situation, the less you look trustworthy. I'm calling it "narcissist's irony", which you already know as hypocrisy or other word, but this can happen even when you have no dirt at all. Remember, all dirt can be manufactured, even if it's so flimsy that it evaporates with a single "no".