Koffee, sorry he didn't kiss your tail when you met him, but your comments are pretty ignorant. Few "washed up has beens" win Paris Nice and the Criterium International the year prior. And a bronze medal (should have been silver) in the '04 Olympics. He had a pretty OK '05 Tour too...4th on one of the hardest mountain stages (Courchevel - Briançon) and 4th in the final TT.
Fact is if he was "washed up" wouldn't have been on both the Giro (which he finished and his guy won) AND the Tour CSC team. He's been parcelling his efforts with two grand tours in mind, not riding for personal results. You might not realize it, but that's a huge effort. I wouldn't expect most non racers or casual fans to get that though. If people thought Hincapie was a GC contender, they'll think most anything. It's way beyond the casual fan to understand training cycles, peaks, and things that can go wrong.
As far as defending the jersey, he's had teammates in the yellow several times, so he might have some insight. And he's said flat out on several many that his days as a TDF GC contender are over.
He happens to live around the corner from me and trains here, he's got a very good rep around town. I've spoken with him at length, and found him very focused, not surprising given the demands of the profession. Pompous? Hardly.