2) Beauty proves the rule? Not entirely (6) E?T?E? Presumably this is ESTHER, being contained within (not entirely) "proves the rule". But I don't think it's unreasonable (or,as some might call it "too Ximenean") to complain that ESTHER is not a synonym for BEAUTY. He could easily have said "A beauty, perhaps, proves the rule" or even "She proves the rule". But he didn't, and I think there is a clear difference between libertarianism and simply sloppy clues.
Incidentally, for those possibly struggling with 23 Across, ("Misplaced pretention for household gear") (3-7), the typo needs correcting from "pretention" to "pretension" to give TIN-OPENERS. I do wish Mr Moorey could proof read his puzzles prior to them being printed, or at least pay someone else to proof read them for him.