The core of a successful team is it's cohesive atmosphere with the stakeholders. If a failure occurs, take responsibility as a whole. If successful, let it be shared to the "team". In any meetings, a better approach is to avoid the "I". Vested interest should not come up in any scenario. A common politics is showing off all that the "other one" only responsible for a mistake. If the "intention" is to resolve something, the team will internally put their efforts and find solution. And at the end, the final resolution will be shared among all (if necessary). The lack of empathy and the greediness of "over power" creates this kind of dirty politics. The curse of office politics is the destruction of "humans" whom the op guy won't consider at all.