Joe Biden Declines to Directly Apologize to Anita Hill for His Handling of 1991 Hearing.

[elleng]

on The View. (NYT)

'In his first sit-down interview of his presidential campaign, Joseph R. Biden Jr. on Friday repeatedly declined to directly apologize to Anita Hill for his handling of the 1991 Clarence Thomas hearings, instead delivering a broad statement of remorse for how she was treated during the combative questioning she faced from an all-male Senate committee that he led.

Appearing on ABC’s “The View,” which is heavily watched by women, Mr. Biden was asked by one of its hosts, Joy Behar, about his reluctance in recent months to offer a straightforward apology to Ms. Hill for his own judgment and leadership during the hearings. Ms. Behar suggested that Mr. Biden should say, “I’m sorry for the way I treated you, not for the way you were treated.”

“I’m sorry for the way she got treated,” Mr. Biden responded. “If you go back to what I said, and didn’t say, I don’t think I treated her badly.”

[Read our analysis of Mr. Biden’s appearance on “The View”]

The former vice president also declined to pledge that he would serve only one term if elected president, spoke about his relationship with former President Barack Obama, and addressed his past treatment of women who have said his touching and his conduct made them uncomfortable. . .

On Friday, Mr. Biden spoke largely in passive voice about how Ms. Hill was treated, despite the fact that he led the Senate committee when she testified before it.

Describing their phone call, he said, “I said privately what I’ve said publicly. I’m sorry she was treated the way she was treated. I wish we could have figured out a better way to get this done. I did everything in my power to do what I thought was within the rules to be able to stop things.”

“I don’t know why it took you so long to call her,” Ana Navarro, another host, said. “I wish it had happened earlier.”

“Since I had publicly apologized for the way she was treated,” Mr. Biden said, “I didn’t want to, quote, invade her space,” by calling her privately.'>>>

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/26/us/politics/anita-hill-biden-clarence-thomas.html?

(I listened/watched the show @ the laundromat, so was able to give it less than my full attention. Sadly, I was not moved or very impressed.)

[WeekiWater]

1. I hadn't heard.

It's good we are getting this out of the way.

[elleng]

6. Would be good if we WERE, but I'm sorry to say I don't think we are.

He may need better 'coaches.'

[WeekiWater]

7. Seems to be doing extremely well to me. NT

[elleng]

8. Glad to hear it;

different opinions always valuable.

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

21. Yeah, Joe needs to hire new advisors to advise him what to say...

Joe does not like apologizing, that's seems to be his "go to" mindset... not to Anita, or, more recently, to other women he's offended, like Lucy.

All that does is keep these stories on the front page, as he'll keep getting asked if he wants to apologize. Then, if he finally does, it'll be only because he was pressured to do so.

Better to have done it immediately, right out of the gate, but apparently ole Joe thinks he knows better. Bad move!


Bernie & Elizabeth 2020!!!
Welcome to the revolution!!!

[elleng]

24. I'd suggest advise him on HOW to say what he wants to say,

not on WHAT to say.

[NYMinute]

74. Those stories are dead already

He is leaving Bernie back in the dust and raising money hands over fist.

No matter what Biden says to Anita Hill, it won't be enough for the Bernie devotees anyway.

[shanny]

81. How predictable.

Someone always deflects to Bernie.

[Indygram]

2. Why did he even reach out to her only to give a non-apology?

I'm so disappointed in him over this. Someone in his circle REALLY needs to explain to him that a non-apology is worse than not apologizing at all.

[elleng]

3. I agree.

[DURHAM D]

62. He did it so he could use it politically.

He was counting on Anita not making a public statement because she avoids all media attention. That way he could get away with his version of the story.

The fact she responded caught him by surprise.

[WhiskeyGrinder]

4. Apologizing in a heartfelt way isn't complicated, and it blows my mind that so many people

are so shitty at it.

[Indygram]

9. It doesn't even really have to be all that hearfelt...it just has to be sincere and include 3 things

1) Apologize
2) Acknowledge
3) Atone

All three components of an effective and sincere apology in one simple statement:

"I'm sorry for the role I played in how you were treated. What can I do to make sure I do better in the future?"

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

22. Joe is obviously getting bad advice.

Bernie & Elizabeth 2020!!!
Welcome to the revolution!!!

[WhiskeyGrinder]

31. You're right, sincerity is key, not heartfelt.

Great post.

[Bradshaw3]

36. Well said n/t

[BannonsLiver]

5. Would it have mattered if he had?

[USALiberal]

12. Of course it would. Nt

[Indygram]

14. I think it would

Non-apologies are often just as hurtful as the original transgression. Everyone makes mistakes. Those who can take responsibility for their mistakes have courage. I'm very disappointed in Joe Biden over being so goddamned tone deaf about the non-apology.

[BannonsLiver]

17. What would have changed?

[marylandblue]

18. He could put the issue behind him, and demonstrate how he has changed.

That seems to be his goal, but if it doesn't sound real, it isn't effective. Passive tense apologies (how you were treated) don't sound real.

[Demsrule86]

58. Nothing would be enough...30 years ago.

[Indygram]

30. It would demonstrate personal accountability, compassion, maturity...

growth, the ability to tell right from wrong, respect for others, specifically women...

As it stands now, how he is handling this has severely diminished my opinion of him. I have been on the receiving end of a lame fake ass non-apology after someone behaved in a way that wreaked havoc on my life. It's like yanking the scab off and pouring acid on the wound.

Anyone who has experienced this kind of thing (and women get this crap A LOT) is likely to find it really offensive and troublesome.

[BannonsLiver]

33. And then what?

[Indygram]

34. After giving a real apology he moves on

From there, Anita Hill can forgive him or not, but he will have done the right thing. That is what matters to me. It's not whether or not she forgives him, it's whether or not HE handles this the right way. It's important to me.

[BannonsLiver]

37. "He moves on"

There are people here, and elsewhere, deeply invested in Hill derailing Biden’s candidacy. Do you really think they are going to allow him to “move on” by simply apologizing to her?

Sorry, I see these OPs today for what they are. A misguided, deeply pathetic effort to damage him, masquerading as concern for Hill.

[Indygram]

39. What about people like me? I like Biden. He is my second choice. I'm not trying to derail

I am, however, EXTREMELY disappointed in not only the non-apology, but also in how people here are justifying something that is NOT OK. If he gives a real apology publicly and anyone here still tries to make it an issue I will be the first one to defend him. Right now I can't defend him because he is in the wrong.

[BannonsLiver]

46. Nah, most would just move the goalposts a little to the left

Or they would just say it’s not good enough.

[Indygram]

82. Perhaps...but it matters to me and I like him

If he doesn't fix this it takes him from my number two to last on my list barring Gabbard and Sanders. That makes me very sad. As a woman who has been treated horribly and been offered up fake non-apologies that are intended to ease the offenders guilt rather than make amends for wrongdoing...this is NOT OK with me.

[LongtimeAZDem]

56. +1

[Demsrule86]

59. Are you serious? Joe Biden is very compassionate. You seriously

are just against him. But these sort of attacks won't work because everyone knows Biden's story.

[Indygram]

84. Do a search...I have consistently defended him against other things

I WANT him to be running. I do NOT want him to drop out. I want him to do the right thing because I thought he was better than this.

[LongtimeAZDem]

63. Joe biden needs to demonstrate compassion, maturity, and respect for women? YGBFKM

[Indygram]

86. By giving a non apology it makes him look like he does not

and I don't think that he lacks any of those things but refusing to give a legitimate apology implies that he doesn't.

[Kurt V.]

51. feelings of resentment. which can alter a persons life in 1000s of unknown ways.

we are a sum of our lived experiences.

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

23. Abso-fuckin-lutely!! Not a great way for Joe to start the campaign.

Bernie & Elizabeth 2020!!!
Welcome to the revolution!!!

[BannonsLiver]

26. LOL

This is the Gettysburg address compared to Bernie’s meltdown at She the People.

[Thekaspervote]

32. Smile!!!

[marlakay]

10. I like Joe I am watching the view

It’s almost over here on the west, he isn’t coming across well except as a very compassionate person with grief issues.

I was hoping to see the tough Joe ready to take on Trump but he seemed like he couldn’t understand why he had to explain things.

Maybe it would have been better to say I am a very expressive kind of guy I sincerely apologize to anyone who took it as more than what I meant in my heart and I am changing. And to Anita say I apologize for not supporting you in the way that you needed at the time, I was trying my best at the time but it didn’t work for you. Something like that.

He ended up spending most of his hour defending what he did and who he is instead of going forward.

[elleng]

13. With you on impressions of his appearance,

sadly.

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

25. Couldn't agree more... Joe's first campaign appearance and THAT'S the first impression he gives?!

Was surprised Joe's advisors didn't prepare him better than that, given the friendly environment of The View, but, maybe they didn't think they needed to prep Joe very much because of that. Hopefully, they've learned from this.


Bernie & Elizabeth 2020!!!
Welcome to the revolution!!!

[emmaverybo]

41. He should not apologize

For Republicans cynically choosing a very flawed candidate who, to their political advantage, would be only the second African American male in history to go on to be an SC justice, thus putting liberals in a bind if they should reject him. He should not apologize for Thomas, a sick abuser, who misappropriated serious racial injustice to himself in claiming the hearings were a high tech lynching. With this, Thomas cloaked his sexual abuse in righteousness, evoking horrible images of black males murdered for the myth of being unable to control sexual aggression.He, and the Repugs advancing him, dared the white male Dems to risk being seen as continuing systemic racial discrimination to stop black males from assuming power within the system.
Biden should not apologize for an imperfect, ineffective hearing process, still the recourse for sexual abuse claims, in which the accuser can be attacked, while the chairman must appear to run things in a bipartisan manner.
Neither should he apologize for the false smears Repugs engineered to continue discrediting Hill, after the hearings.
Finally he should not apologize for his Dem colleagues who were cowed by the optics and pulled their punches.
He voted against Thomas. He attempted to be more interrogative of him than his colleagues. He has gone on to praise Hill, has never attacked her, and has done great stuff for women.
The day he assumes responsibility for wrongs that did not originate with him is the day he keeps on having to shoulder the blame for Thomas, conservatives, a flawed system for dealing with sex abuse accusations, his colleagues, and ugly exploitation of racial inequity that Thomas was complicit in with his sponsors.
Enough!

[DURHAM D]

65. You seem to have missed the fact that the hearing

was completely under his control. He decided the agenda, the witnesses, the scheduling and the timing. eos

[LongtimeAZDem]

67. And, as such, continuing when further witnesses were seen to lack credibility would have made it look

look like he was pursing a partisan outcome at the expense of the facts.

This is what we get pissed at the Republicans for doing, remember?

[DURHAM D]

68. Nonsense and wrong.

The witness credibility thingie was made up later by the Biden staff.

[LongtimeAZDem]

69. OK, that's just BS

Seriously, this has gone off the rails.

If Biden had been given ANYTHING credible with which he could stop the Thomas confirmation, he would have used it.

People have created this insane narrative where he acquiesced to an horrible candidate just to snub Hill.

[DURHAM D]

70. You are the one with a BS problem. nt

[USALiberal]

11. Wow, disappointed he could not do that! Nt

[Demsrule86]

60. So amazing all who support other candidates are disappointed. I loved

It.

[USALiberal]

79. We can like Joe and still think he made a mistake. nt

[G_j]

15. Doesn't it sound like he is blaming others?

at least to me it does

[marylandblue]

19. Or at least not taking responsibility for his own role. "Mistakes were made."

[elleng]

29. He did have probs with the 'politics' at the time,

as I recall. Learned about it some time ago. Was there a documentary on the subject, few years ago?

[Honeycombe8]

42. There was legal counsel for the Committee.

This wasn't a panel of law judges. They were Senators.

I saw the hearing. I thought he treated Anita Hill respectfully.

This was almost 30 years ago. This was the first time that panel was having a confirmation on an Af. American Judge to be Justice. So it was touchy for that reason, to begin with.

But Biden did pretty well. He was maybe weak. They maybe should have done this or that. But it wasn't a trial. I think Anita Hill thinks of it as a trial. It wasn't. She wanted an expert called to explain the effects of sexual harassment. They could have done that, but that wasn't that relevant, actually. A man could do or say something which makes him ineligible to be a S.Ct. Justice, without his behavior causing lasting distress to the "victim."

I don't know that anything he could have done differently would have changed the outcome. The Senators were free to vote how they wanted to. Just like for Kavanaugh, the Republicans were going to vote to confirm. And a few Democrats, unfortunately, did, too. Biden did not.

I have no more problem with that than with the bankrtupcy law he pushed through, which adversely affected everyone in the country (you couldn't get medical bills excused in bankruptcy, any more, as I recall the bill was).

Those who want to use the Hill issue will be mentioning this repeatedly. Nothing will quieten them, since it helps the candidate they support. Biden could apologize, not apologize, turn back the clock, or do anything. They would still keep harping on this.

Which means that others will harp on things regarding the other candidates.

This is why Senators and representatives are usually not elected President. Because people can use their record going back for years. Too much to attack, rightly or wrongly.

The thing remains, though, that Biden just might be the best candidate to beat Trump. We'll see. We'll see if the Democrats want to beat down their candidate against Trump. I think we should be respectful and realistic when addressing concerns we have about the candidates.

[marylandblue]

47. Personally, I don't care if Biden or any other Dem shot someone on fifth avenue.

Which I know makes me as evil as any deplorable and all that, but I'm not a purist or a saint. I just want to win. Which is what everyone else says they want, but I'm just owning up to what that means in a Trumpian world.

In a Trumpian world, how you respond to negative information makes all the difference. Trump gets away with everything because he doubles down and attacks every accuser no matter how petty. Crazy that it works, but it obviously does work well enough to keep him alive this far.

Biden, so far, has given half apologies. I think that isn't such a good way to respond and it will hurt him.

But what do I know? I'm a Democratic deplorable. If Biden shot a Republican on Fifth Avenue, I'd drive the getaway car.

[elleng]

48. 'We'll see if the Democrats want to beat down their candidate against Trump.

I think we should be respectful and realistic when addressing concerns we have about the candidates.'

[ucrdem]

16. That would have been completely inappropriate.

They weren't married, they weren't lovers, they aren't even in the same party. She testified in a confirmation hearing as a consequence of her own written statements. Why has Anita Hill become a permanent part of Biden's life?

[marylandblue]

20. Because the hearings left a mark on a generation of women.

And was the #metoo moment of it's day. Biden is a man of his generation, so we shouldn't fault him too much for misunderstanding the situation back then. But we've learned a lot since then, and certain voters will demand that he show he learnt it too.

[Demsrule86]

61. No it dIdnt. Such nonsense

[marylandblue]

72. Please study history before you talk about it.

You either didn't live through it, have forgotten, or perhaps because maybe it didn't affect you much, you think it's "nonsense" that it might have affected others. You have a right to disagree of course, but you are simply dismissing the feelings of people who were there, remember it, and saw how the workplace changed as a result. If you think there is something wrong with sexual harassment today, thank Anita Hill, all by herself, for bringing it to your attention.


https://www.history.com/news/anita-hill-confirmation-hearings-impact

https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2018/09/18/no-women-served-senate-judiciary-committee-ugly-anita-hill-hearings-changed-that/?utm_term=.6b296c430b5b

https://money.cnn.com/2017/10/30/pf/anita-hill-sexual-harassment/index.html


It doesn't really matter to me anymore. But I do like to keep the record straight.

[Demsrule86]

75. It is baloney...there was no traumatized women. And I was alive ;it was a hearing,

You all are supporting other candidates just another take down attempt...won't work. Biden can win . None of the others candidates can in my opinion.

[marylandblue]

78. Then you don't remember, and you are misquoting me too.

I said, "left a mark," not traumatized. It wasn't a rape. But it was more than just another hearing. Same way the Ford-Kavanaugh hearing was.

And I also said, "Biden is a man of his generation, so we shouldn't fault him too much for misunderstanding the situation back then." If you consider that a take down attempt, that's a really thin glass jaw you have there.

As always, I don't care if Biden shot someone on Fifth Avenue. If he shoots a Republican, I'll even hand him the gun. But I do care about how he cleans up afterward. It's not illegal to shoot someone, it's only illegal to lose votes over it.

[liberalnarb]

55. I hope this is a joke.

[Demsrule86]

64. Beats me. Arlene specter was the worst. There would not have been a hearing without

Last edited Fri Apr 26, 2019, 08:29 PM - Edit history (1)

Biden.

[stonecutter357]

27. I'll take Joe Biden over most of the rest anyday !

[True Dough]

28. Here's a clip from The View.

Joe's getting a lot of press coverage over this. The news channels are portraying this as Biden tripping out of the gate, and over a very old issue that he's had plenty of time to ponder and be prepared to address because it was sure to arise once his candidacy was confirmed. He comes off as defensive. Not a good look.

[marylandblue]

80. This is exactly what I was afraid would happen to Biden. It's what happened to him in 1988.

Everything gets spun against him, and he doesn't know how to spin it back. Maybe this time will be different, but it doesn't look that way so far.

[Thekaspervote]

35. Seems to me after watching the interview he did not side step, admitted his mistake

What do you want?

[BannonsLiver]

38. They want him out of the race, and for it to benefit their candidates

Hill is just a bludgeon. A tool.

[Honeycombe8]

43. +1. nt

[George II]

40. How many different ways and times must he apologize?

I thought his appearance on the View was great, and glad they didn't rush him on and off, he was there for most of the entire hour. Some of the questions I thought, however, were inane. Why should Biden be expected to "pledge" that he'd serve only one term? Is anyone else being asked that?

[LongtimeAZDem]

44. No matter what he does, it will never be enough for the critics

[Kahuna7]

45. Should he have to apologize for the actions of Hatch, Grassley and Spector....

who earned the nickname, 'snarlin' Arlen' after that debacle? They were entitled to ask their questions and there is nothing Biden could have done to stop them.

[emmaverybo]

49. Yes!

And Thomas. Somehow he gets forgotten. He has never been called to answer.

[NastyRiffraff]

50. It's too late to apologize directly

It would look like he's doing it only because he's running for president. I like Joe and would happily vote for him in the general, but I think he was mistaken about Anita Hill initially, and it's going to be hard to correct it at this late date. Doesn't mean he wouldn't be a good president, but this is an issue that may haunt him.

[Persondem]

52. unrec ... nt

[underthematrix]

53. As an African American woman this thread really really irks me.

BLACK PEOPLE of all political types wanted an African American on the SCOTUS even though the dude was a perv. Both Biden and Bush 1 understood this. In 1991, this is was a big deal for the AfAm community. The community was angry with Anita Hill because they saw her accusation as an old racist stereotype about black male sexuality. I believed Anita Hill but I hated what she was doing to the image of black men in general. We were relieved it didn't work. That's when I first fell in love with Joe Biden. He handled a very difficult situation with humility and grace. DU members you need to stop evaluating historical events with current values. Learn the history, especially black history before you post stuff like this.

[LongtimeAZDem]

54. Thank you for this; I appreciate your perspective.

[Demsrule86]

66. Wow,..good for you. I didn't know that...makes sense.

[DURHAM D]

71. Were they mad at the NAACP for withdrawing support for Thomas?

[LongtimeAZDem]

73. Margaret Bush Wilson, the nine-term Board Chair of the NAACP (1975 to 1984) was:

When the history of these times is written, it will be interesting to see how historians view the position of the National Board of the NAACP -- an organization committed to advancing colored people, which is opposed, on ideological grounds, to this nomination of a black man to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Let the record show that the NAACP's former national board chair respectfully disagrees with its position.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/opinions/1991/08/06/the-naacp-is-wrong-on-thomas/2228e5f0-b2f7-483b-84e8-2cdd8d9d5aa0/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.7219ec274bf0

[underthematrix]

88. Yes. There's the tension and complexity of the issue. Some wanting a black SCOTUS and knowing that

he's both unqualified and will support positions that harm black people. But the average black person saw a black man being elevated to the highest court in the land. Not the evil he would soon prove to be. History can be a powerful friend.

[Skittles]

77. interesting perspective

what I saw was an extremely accomplished black woman with incredible courage who was treated with suspicion and outright hostility - I thought Clarence Thomas was disgusting, and he has proved himself to be one of the worst justices EVER.

[Indygram]

87. I can't speak for everyone else, but it's NOT about the hearing and what happened that bothers me

What bothers me is that he chose to reach out and offer an apology and rather than do it properly he gave a non-apology. What some people don't seem to understand is that a non-apology serves one purpose and one purpose only...to make the apologizer feel better. It seeks to ease the guilt of the person who is apologizing and avoid making amends to the person being apologized to. I've been on the receiving end of non apologies and I can assure you that receiving one of those is FAR WORSE than getting no apology at all because it makes you feel minimized, disregarded and victimized all over again. She didn't seek him out asking for an apology. He sought her out. For him to stir this all up and impact her all over again he damn well needs to get it right. If he doesn't, then he's just not the man I always imagined him to be.

[Demsrule86]

57. And ?

Why should he.

[Turbineguy]

76. What was trump doing in 1991

It may be important.

[LakeArenal]

83. I guess you missed the part where Joy said..

We should get Anita Hill to come on with you here on the View and Joe said positively that he would do it. I don’t want to paraphrase his exact words.

Unfortunately the previous dozens of commenters didn’t get to know that.

[elleng]

85. I heard it, NYT maybe didn't.

But there was discussion about how maybe Dr. Hill wouldn't be interested, or has suggested some such.