I think the lack of direct apology is nod to Trump. Trump does not admit or apologize and when others do, they are cast by him as weak. Biden thinks he can stand up to Trump? He flunked the first test.
8
This is a major mistake on Vice-President Biden's part in my opinion. He needs to put this behind him and as soon as possible so it doesn't become the talking points that will distract from the real issue here: defeating Donald Trump in 2020.
I don't know who is advising Mr. Biden, or if he is just taking his own counsel, but he is making the very same mistake Hillary Clinton made when the e-mail fiasco came to light.
She dodged, obfuscated, made excuses, and resisted doing the one thing that would have put it to rest: admit she made a mistake, beg the country for forgiveness and resolve to be better.
If Joe Biden followed that playbook, if he sincerely apologized to Prof. Hill - she more than deserves that - he would free himself from the stain on his past - and it was a stain. She was treated horribly, and he is responsible for that.
Very few politicians seem to have learned the lesson that by sincerely asking for the public to forgive a transgression s/he can - in most cases - be renewed so that they can run on the issues that are so important to most Americans.
The time he spent on The View should have been used to talk about his vision for the country, his disdain for Donald Trump, his 8 years as vice-president, his knowledge of foreign policy.
5
Biden's appearance on "The View" was ironic: the self-identified liberals hammered him on his response to Anita Hill while his champion was Megan McCain, the arch conservative.
1
Give it a rest, people! I definitely believed Anita when all this transpired, but really, does this matter more all these years later than the actions of our current president? Do you really want him for a second term? REALLY?? Because your constant whining about this will just give us more of people just like Clarence Thomas.
Going after the Democrat du jour is playing right into Trump's hands. Keep it up. He loves it!
2
Sorry Joe, we'll all be better off if you just give it up now. If you're stumbling this badly coming out of the gate, how are you going to possibly hold your own against the biggest and loudest liar of the early 21st century, who will certainly win the GOP nomination despite anything that the fraudulent Romney or even the reasonable Weld will be able to do.
Make no mistake, the lying loudmouth blowhard Trump will rampage all over any Democrat in the Presidential debates who is not prepared to counter and attack like a street fighter because Trump is a bully who will relentlessly attack any perceived weakness, real or imagined to score points with his base.
Even the strongest of proposed policies to help the majority of citizens will take a backseat to the aggression and insults that will spew like venom out of Trump's mouth. Trump is a coward and a bully who faces multiple lawsuits once he's out of office and he'll be trying to delay that for as long as possible.
4
This is becoming absurd. An apology is only an empty formality.....it is behavioral change that means something. It’s like telling your 4 year old to say “Sorry” for taking a toy out of Susie’s hands. Nice, but if your child still grabs thing from other children, that apology is meaningless. Let’s look at Biden’s life of service. Honestly, unless you were raised in a super liberal family in the 1950’s, chances are you, too, were allowed some currently unacceptable thoughts and words.
I remember stealing a piece of penny candy from a dime store in the 50’s....does that mean I should be marked as a thief today? Let us take people where they are TODAY,
1
Biden's showing cracks--show s he's human and he's showing up (50% is just showing up)...Trump strain so ethics resistant--laughable he'd even attempt to show up(the View)or give apology. Bottom Line--fallible is good--infallible,not so much
Please admit that you made it impossible for Anita Hill to prove her case through other women who could have proved #metoo. Please don’t attempt to blame it on others. You were the committee chair. It’s all on you. If you can’t do that, I can’t vote for you.
7
Trump doesn’t apologize for anything. I was stunned by Biden's refusal to apologize. don’t need another self-righteous jerk as president
5
Biden the spoiler will give us trump again.
3
Joe Biden did apologize. I heard him. Maybe we all listen differently but I heard an apology.
This is ridiculous. We have a person in the White House who has never even come close to apologizing for his numerous physical sexual assaults on women, for raping his first wife (her deposition), for all the people he’s financially ruined, for his racism, and for maligning a Four Star Family and a dead war hero — and you keep writing about Biden? Please! Stop!
How about writing about Biden’s compassion and all the people Biden has helped?
Stop the attacks. You’re beating the proverbial dead horse.
Do you really want another four years of trump? If so, then keep on doing what you’re doing.
In eight years observing a strong black woman in the White House did it not occur to him at least once to call Ms. Hill privately. Now, now it's important.
Oh, . . . .mercy Joe.
4
What does Joe Biden mean that he didn’t treat Hill badly? If nothing else he refused to permit other women to testify about similar harassment by Clarence Thomas. They were ready, willing and able to testify but Biden wouldn’t permit it. This cast Thomas as the lone accuser, a little nutty and a little slutty. It would have been much more difficult to demonize her if she was one of 3 or 4 accusers.
5
Shouldn’t Clarence Thomas be the one apologizing?
2
@Jane if he were running for president, which he isn't
4
It’s over, Joe. Say goodbye.
5
Joe,
It’s a no go. You’re hopelessly out of touch.
Joe, for vanity and hubris, you’re standing in the way. Step aside.
6
Hey Joe; You know I admire you. Am I right that your a good man, or am I naive and uninformed?
Go read the Brain article in this paper published April 24 and 25. What do you know about that Joe? Come clean or Americans are gonna get mad.
Joe Biden is incurably clueless.
4
Joe Biden’s disgraceful treatment of Anita Hill disqualifies him from the Democratic nomination. He’s just another old , rich , white man who believes that he is entitled to be President.
3
Maybe he should apologize for all the evils perpetrated by white men since the dawn of humanity and throughout the millennia.
Sorry, Joe, but you are far too conservative for me.
3
Anita Hill might be the biggest barrier for Joe Biden?
And Donald Trump paid off porn stars while his wife, our now First Lady, just had a baby? And that’s ok?
Ok, people. Time to get your heads on straight.
3
An ugly sport: Individuals are accused of doing something "terrible," they sweat blood trying to come up with sufficiently sincere apologies knowing all along that their actions were well-meaning, and then watch their apologies dismissed out of hand.
3
Enough. He is not an evil man, he is not a misogynist. I am old enough to have watched the hearings as an adult. The Republicans were the same then as now, completely without ethics. There was no roadmap for those hearings when they occurred. Would more witnesses have helped? Maybe Ms Hill personally, but certainly not the outcome.
We have an election to win. My elderly in-laws, Fox watching voters, said they would vote for him. So would other Republicans I know.
We have a country to save, let’s leave the need for lifelong purity behind.
3
Another reason why Trump very well may win in 2020. Democrats are digging into Joe Biden's actions in 1991 whereas Republicans (and many voters) could care less. Voters do not care about Joe Biden's current opinions on Anita Hill in 1991, seriously, enough with this. Instead of focusing on the plans for America's improvement people are talking about what Joe Biden said on a daytime talk show regarding something that happened almost 30 years ago. I'm embarrassed for the party that I've been a part of in the past but am quickly becoming disillusioned with ever since the gross mismanagement in 2016.
2
Biden genuinely seems like a nice man. Unfortunately for him, he’s a relic of a past generation, one that esteemed male values of toughness and correctness in ways that younger generations, especially liberal youth, no longer do. There are Republican factions that love the “I’m a tough guy, I don’t apologize” persona - see Trump, as an example. And perhaps Biden is right that he has good reasons to defend what he did, without an apology. But today’s Democrat party, highly skewed toward the young, will never accept such a position. One only needs to observe the Dems’ apology tours to understand the depth of mea culpa required to launch a Democratic presidential bid. Joe simply isn’t in touch. Maybe if he were to run as a center Republican he would have a better chance. Look, I hope he does well to bookend a long, illustrious career in public service and a life filled with loss, but it’s hard to see. Unless an old dog can learn a lot of new tricks. All the best to him!
1
It is painful to watch this slo-mo train wreck. He will get there kicking and screaming, so why not just say sorry and try to put it behind. If he is worried that his apology will be used to target him in primaries, then he is just poorly advised because the longer he drags it, the bigger it will get.
3
"Doing the right thing" often works against us. It exposes us. But it's best for us, because it forces us to reform ourselves; to be better. And it starts with showing remorse to the victim. Then the hard work begins — of changing character.
I like Joe Biden, but he has work to do there. The tragedies of his life don't exempt him from having hard lessons to learn, like every other human being.
2
Joe hasn't handled the Anita Hill situation at all well. He needs to do better and quickly if he's to be taken seriously as a presidential candidate. "Sorry, I made a mistake" would be a good place to start.
2
What is wrong with this man? It's simple. "I was wrong." Biden's handling of these two looming issues of terrible behavior toward women has eroded the respect I gained for him during his eight years as Barack Obama's Vice-President. It is just not sufficient that he has supported women in the legislative abstract if he refuses to admit his own personal and political guilt in his relationships with specific women in particular circumstances.
In his appearance on "The View," in his responses to general questions about Dr. Hill, in his conversation with her, and especially in his joking about the women who have spoken about his inappropriate and invasive touching, he has behaved like a sullen boy or, unfortunately, like a typical male politician--evasive, defensive, indignant at even being asked the questions.
As admirable as he seems to have been in his family life, his playing it over and over again is excessive. Loss is loss. We have all had it. Wiping away that tear is wearing thin. And for him to actually say he has developed empathy in the face of his recent behavior is reprehensible.
I will vote for the Democratic nominee, but Biden has betrayed those of us who have admired him.
5
Do liberals really think that "the new generation" is that different from the old? Take a quick look north to see how Justin is doing. The new generation is just as flawed as the old. Maybe in different ways, but really it's just about politics and power in the end, and the new generation is really no different from the old when it comes to that. What's happening now is simply a power grab by groups with less power, women, minorities, etc. It's not a battle for social justice, that's just a label that makes it seem nicer. Not that there's anything wrong with seizing power, but that's what it is. Let's keep in mind that this terrible old generation is the baby boomers, aka former Vietnam protesters, etc.
2
Unfortunately, apologizing twenty years later, when it serves his interests doesn't cut it!! Joe comes across as just another ambitious mock-humble politician. Surely the overwhelming desire to just beat Trump can turn up a brighter prospect than a pretty unimpressive also-ran. The Dems always have the ability to seize defeat from the jaws of victory. This time the consequences to our nation would be disastrous.
3
The hardest thing to do for a politician?
Saying "I sincerely apologized for the wrong I did."
4
I recall these hearings and my lasting impression was not that Joe Biden was disrespectful of Professor Hill, but of the Republicans who were. Yes, a committee chair is supposed to manage the hearing, but the rules require that each member be heard. This is why Democrats on the Judiciary Committee could quiz Judge Kavanaugh on the hidden meanings behind scribblings in his high school yearbook decades after the fact. I greatly respect Professor Hill but the totality of Biden's record, including his support of VAWA, is what I will consider. It's almost as if we are expecting Biden to apologize for an era of American history. Enough is enough.
2
He continues his streak of being a horrible presidential candidate. He also is a person with enormous baggage from his past decisions and NO sincere apologies for the harm he has done. So, he has alienated women, people of color, young people, progressives. The least safe candidate.
2
Anita Hill should simply forgive Joe, he's not responsible for her feelings, or her response to his normal and judicious questioning during congressional hearings that were of great import to America. Her immature response that she wasnot prepared for her hearings is no excuse, Joe Biden was proper in his actions and purposeful in his direction and Ms Hills idea that he should have been less real about the import and treateed her like a grandfather rather than as a United States Senator , it wasnt a classroom discussion people, it was a congressional hearing.
1
I'm positive Joe Biden made mistakes. We're also talking about the lawmaker that wrote the violence against women act. Times have changed very quickly the last 40 years and he has learned. We Democrats seem to be adept at losing elections. How about not eating our own and having a tad of unity?
2
Joe, the future is not yours. A 76 year-old is not what we need, that chance has past. There's no need to cajole a way around past sins. Sit down, relax, and thank you for your service. We'll take it from here.
-The "dreaded" millennials
2
For Biden to say he's sorry for what happened to Anita Hill, when he was chairman of the committee that railroaded her, is unacceptable. To say he wishes there was something he could have done, as he said on another recent occasion, is unacceptable from the person who was chairman of the committee that railroaded Hill.
These statements are in the here and now, revealing Biden's character in the here and now. Not 1991. Right now, in the current day.
And, if Biden believed believed Hill, as he says he does, that would mean he believed Thomas lied under oath. It would be an total dereliction of duty for the chairman of ANY committee to allow the nomination of a perjurer to go forward. To allow someone who committed perjury to have a lifetime seat on the Supreme Court is unforgivable.
So which is it? Does Biden think Hill was telling the truth but perjury is not a big deal, even for a Supreme Court Justice? Or does he think Hill was not telling the truth?
Furthermore, it seems obvious that had Biden let Hill's corroborating witnesses testify, Thomas would not have been confirmed. And many 5–4 decisions might have gone differently, including the decision to halt the recount in Florida in 2000.
The country suffers to this day for Biden's dereliction of duty. Biden not only owes Hill an apology, he owes the country an apology. But he's never sorry for his behavior, ever, is he?
5
Anita Hill was trying to save us from Thomas and Biden must have listened to her, at least in part, because he did what she wanted to do, vote against Thomas. The fault lies with Bush Sr. who nominated this man.
1
I watched the "View" and was struck by how unprepared he seemed for the two obvious questions: Anita Hill and unwanted touching. His "murder board" should have had him ready to look straight into the camera and say "I am sorry" in an active voice.
No instead he tried to punt, used an inactive voice like he was talking about someone other than himself. You needed to close the door, Joe. Slam it hard. "I am sorry."
It proved he still does not understand that subjecting Anita Hill to a trial as the victim was flat out wrong. As chairman of the committee, Biden had the power to say no to the character assassins. And Biden had a gavel and could have used it against the Senators who were out of line.
I am less concerned about the "touching" or the over demonstrative gestures. But some people don't like to have their heads rubbed or their necks nuzzled so just say "I am sorry" if I made you uncomfortable.
Joe, you did not close the door. And now we have to go through a second round of questions until you FINALLY say "I am sorry." And by that time it could be too late.
3
Dumb move by a smart man. It could sway my vote.
1
See how dumb this guy is? He couldn't just say "I'm sorry" to Anita Hill who was treated shabbily, largely by him, for what, telling the truth?
6
I have already written in earlier comments in print at other article in the simplest plainest English at my disposal this:
I do not understand at all why Biden is at the top.
I do understand why I would choose others, preferably presented as pairs, following a suggestion of a comment writer a couple of days ago.
My choice:
Elizabeth Warren - President
Peter Buttigieg - Vice President
Biden shows by his treatment of the Anita Hill question that he is still back there in the distant past. My president must have at least made it into the 3d decade of the 21st century.
My duo are already at the doorstep of that time in the history of my country of birth. Open that door.
Only-NeverInSweden.blogspot.com
Citizen US SE
1
I like Joe Biden and consider him one of our best options for getting rid of the national nightmare that is our current president. But, I am appalled at how poorly Biden has addressed Anita Hill. Years ago, he should have asked for a chance to meet with her, taken full (the buck stops here) personal responsibility for his misguided approach toward her and other women during the Clarence Thomas hearings, explained his genuine change of heart toward women victimized by the Clarence Thomases of the world, and offered evidence of that change. His inability to take those steps, even now, reflects poorly on him and those who advise him.
3
Joe Biden knows that sexism is no bar to the highest office in the land. So why should he apologize?
1
Biden is not the only Democrat who is capable of winning the Presidency. There are strong Democratic and Independent presidential candidates who have neither mistreated nor condescended to women. Their chances of winning will improve substantially if Biden swallows his pride and gracefully exits the race. Personally, I look forward to the day when Ms. Ocasio Cortez has garnered the experience and knowledge to run for President. She is astute, does not grandstand and is whip smart and has integrity.
1991 Joe Biden conducted the Anita Hill hearings as well as any male Senator would have in 1991.
1992 Joe Biden realized that the Senate Judiciary Committee should have women on it and brought Barbara Boxer on board, before that the committee had no women.
1994 Joe Biden wrote the Violence Against Women Act which directly helps women who have been victims of harassment and abuse.
2020 Joe Biden is getting vilified for not apologizing for 1991 Joe Biden even though 1994 Joe Biden more than made up for 1991 Joe Biden's mistake.
2
At 85 I've changed my mind 180 degrees about a lot of things in the past 30 years. I truly dislike it when the Press stirs up these cross-fires from decades ago. For gods sake, let it go already.
Why should Vice President Biden have to apologize for something that happened 28 years ago? This is getting completely ridiculous. He was only the chairman of a congressional committee. Justice Thomas supposedly did the harassing.
Women are going to have to get used to the fact that men make moves on women. If this did not happen there would be no human race. Every woman alive today is the product of her father having the hots for her mother. This is the way the human race propagates itself.
I cannot believe the hypocrisy of the Democratic Party! What about Bill Clinton?! Your party twice nominated this man and he was elected twice to the presidency by this country. Joe Biden is rather benign by comparison.
Joe Biden for president. I have researched his record. His support for women's causes far outweighs his failure in shepherding the Anita Hill hearings. Enough. Is. Enough. BTW, I am an independent, female voter.
2
He can't just say, "I am sorry. I was way out of line."
The fact that he cannot, and I watched him bizarrely avoid this, shows that he is weak. He is not a leader. The best he could come up with is that the bad treatment of Anita Hill flowered into the metoo movement.
In fact, his actions allowed Clarence Thomas, a completely unqualified judge, to rise to the Supreme Court.
He is a company man with zero ability to think for himself, to think beyond what is expedient or to have the courage to be unpopular. He could never beat Trump.
3
I agree that Biden should not have used the "passive voice" when expressing regrets about Anita Hill. That said, let's look at the big picture. I have been tracking the polls closely. The only two Democrats that consistently beat Trump in the swing states & nationally are Biden & Bernie & Biden almost always wins by higher margins than Bernie. I love Bernie Sanders but if he were to be our nominee, I feel pretty certain that Republicans would paint him as a "communist". Furthermore, Howard Schultz has indicated that he would likely run if a progressive won the nomination. When Shultz is added into the polling, Bernie does not do so well against Trump. On top of that, I believe that Trump and company will use all kinds of hanky panky to win the election. Based on polling of many months, Biden definitely has the best chance of beating Trump. And Pennsylvania is a must win for Democrats and Biden is born and raised in PA. Come on folks! Biden has flaws like so many candidates do. But let's look at this in context. Biden and the other candidate's flaws are so very tiny compared to Trumps!!! Yes, we can look at the strengths and weaknesses of each candidate but let's not harpoon our current best chance at beating Trump. There are children in cages, the climate is getting hotter, Ruth Bater Ginsburg may not live another 5 years, Trump is a sexual predator and racist, etc., etc. We have to be strategic and keep our focus on getting Trump out of office!!!
1
Everyone'a saying Biden got Clarence Thomas confirmed. And he did.
But there was more at stake in that hearing that Thomas's confirmation.
The Clarence Thomas/Anita Hill hearings were a landmark in our culture. It was the 1st time a woman - a very impressive & truthful woman - had a national platform to describe, with honesty & clarity, what it was like to be sexually harassed at work by a powerful male boss.
During the cross-examination of Dr. Hill by the creeps on the Judiciary Committee, I got a phone call from my 72 yr old father. My father was far from the most 'woke' person I knew. He was an old man who'd grown up poor in a small south Georgia town, who'd spent his life in the military & as a policy analyst in the Defense Department - no bastions of fairness to women then or now.
But my father was incensed. He saw immediately that Dr. Hill was telling the truth & was appalled by the way the Senators were treating her.
"Why are they doing this? It's disgusting!" he said. "That young woman is obviously telling the truth! I can't believe the hateful way they're treating her. She's very brave."
People are excusing Biden because of his white man working class background - and his age. My father in 1991 was near the age Joe Biden is now - & from a similar background.
But my dad immediately 'got it.' His gut told him the spectacle he was watching - the humiliation of Dr. Hill - was an assault on truth & courage.
What's Joe Biden's excuse?
5
To say he would have treated Christine Balsey Ford better than the current Senate...after his own treatment of Anita Hill as Chair of the Judiciary Committee. He was not just some powerless bystander, he was the chair. The nerve of that guy!
2
Joe Biden is just being Joe Biden which makes me wonder why anyone will vote for him let alone give him money.
Besides being too old for the rigors of running let alone holding together four years in office, should he win, he's not mentally equipped for the rigors of serving the country as it needs.
Please wake up Democrats and nominate someone else.
5
You don't need to be Nate Silver to know Biden has the best chance of beating Trump. Trump knows this. If you think Trump cleverly conspired with the Russians to sow discord in Democratic ranks to get elected, how can you not think he is doing it again? Could any of these anti-Biden commenters be Trump supporters in disguise?
1
Joe Biden is misogynist and patriarchal by nature and nurture and faith and politics and socioeconomics.
5
Donald Trump had a cynical view of American politics.
He must have seen how the CEO's of the large investment banks got away with fraud in the Great Recession of 2008.
A decade earlier Jeff Skilling had gone to jail for white-collar crimes at Enron. But this was a new era. Too many bankers were guilty. So Obama's justice department didn't charge Dick Fuld of Lehmann Brothers with criminal fraud. The big bankers were able to keep their fortunes.
I was aghast. America has the highest incarceration rate in the world among major nations, about 14 times the rate of Japan. Many of the poor in the ghettos go to jail for robbing a 7-11 with a gun. Yet Fuld had bilked retirement funds of billions and helped put the US on a trajectory towards a second Great Depression. And Obama did nothing!
Trump seems to have drawn the obvious conclusion---American institutions are corrupt to the core.
So he took an issue that poor Americans were concerned with, but an issue invisible to the liberal elite. Illegal immigration.
Journalists at the NY Times can afford nannies and gardeners, who are cheaper because of illegal immigration.
But the poor fall through the cracks of Obamacare, and wait in line in the ER behind Spanish-speaking families with large numbers of children for medical care that is often too late and not enough.
Liberals have destroyed out democracy by focusing on political correctness and ignoring real problems.
And Biden is one of the primary mistake-makers.
3
The Democratic Party leadership and the liberal media will cast Biden as a hero for his half-hearted, hypocritical “apology” and portray Professor Hill as an enemy of Democrats’ righteous quest to defeat Trump. But hey, demonizing women who have been victimized by men in politically powerful positions is nothing new to the Democrats. Ask exiled Monica Lewinsky.
2
I said that if the Democrats nominated Bidden that I would cross party lines and vote for him; if not I would stay on the sidelines. After watching a replay of his performance on The View today, I retract my earlier statement. If a person cannot make an open and forthright apology, even if they don't think that what they did was that bad, then they don't deserve to lead this nation. I've been there, I've done that. It simply is not that hard to say, I am sorry for what I did. I didn't mean to hurt you, but now I see that I did, and I am sorry for that,"
We would expect that much from our children. It would be shameful to accept less from a grown-up who aspires to lead us. Whichever party nominates a candidate who knows how to offer such an apology gets my vote.
4
I am amazed that many Democrats think that Joe Biden is a viable candidate.
One of the serious problems confronting the US is the high incarceration rate. The US has the highest per capita incarceration rate in the world, except for the small island nation of the Seychelles and perhaps North Korea. It is 14 times as high as Japan. That is a serious problem.
And Biden is partially responsible by sponsoring bills that were "tough on crime." He is well-known for the Violence Against Women Act which I regard as unconstitutional because it often results in preventive detention on the basis of crimes imagined but not yet committed. And divorce, let's fact it, can be ugly, and it provides women with a weapone that they use, often not honestly to achieve an advantage.
But being tough on crime has destroyed families in the ghettos. Can blacks not see how Joe Biden's policies have enabled liberals to ignore problems of unemployment among the poor? How exactly can Democrats support a politician who policies have failed so dramatically?
Yet now the NY Times skewers Biden because he is not feminist enough in his dialog on the View.
Is it all going to be about political correctness in the next election cycle?
Biden starts his campaign by criticizing Trump for suggesting that there might be people who honor Robert E Lee who are not necessarily racists and bigots. And Democrats want to make that an issue?
What about immigration? What about health care? What about poverty?
I'm a an old liberal femiist, and I'm sorry that Anita Hill was mistreated 30 years ago. But I am so tired of this apoplogy nonsense. Where was the outrage when Biden ran with Obama in 2008 and 2012? I smell a rat. This feels like a political hit job to bring him down and get him out of the way, like Lucy Flores. Everyone has done something objectionable throughout their life. Stop scratching an old wound and move on with life.
While Trump is having a blast destroying the country, democrats are arguing about what Biden said or did or shouldn't have said or done 30 years ago or whether he apologized or didn't apologize. This is why they win and we lose. I don't care about 1991. I care about what Biden has to offer to repair the damage that Trump and his administration have inflicted on us every day, and will continue to do if Trump is not defeated. The election will be won in the Midwest states that we lost to Trump, not in the blue coastal states.
Perhaps Biden should do a press conference and apologize for every perceived offense in the past, present and future. And heck, while he's at it, he should apologize for every evil perpetrated by white men since the dawn of humanity.
And finally, if Biden walked into a restaurant where I was dining, I'd welcome a hug and a smooch on my head. Call me crazy.
2
People are complicated and so is Joe Biden. On one level I am sure Joe Biden is a decent, caring human being. But as a politician his judgment on many occasions has been poor. He has supported policies with foreseeable dire consequences that have resulted in thousands of people being hurt beyond measure.
To choose Biden from among the 20 other Democratic candidates running requires too much faith that he has not only "evolved" politically but also as a person. His failure to properly apologize to Anita Hill for his actions and inaction in the Thomas hearings tells me has not on both accounts.
6
Biden would make a better president than Trump, but so would my pet gerbil. He is not the future or even the present of the Democratic party. He is the past. The powerful, privileged white male who dominated America's political past is not what is needed going forward. Yes, rich donors like him. Yes, I'd vote for him over Trump. But I sure hope I don't have to!
26
Joe Biden is not aware that his behavior was wrong,or worse he believes it would show weakness to apologize to Anita Hill. Either way his campaign is now dead in the water. People really do not think this way if they are under 60. As an editorialist in the Guardian put it Joe is trying to help us return to all that good stuff in the past, that wasn't good at all. It's not his age, it's his ignorance that's showing.
17
Biden is ensuring that this issue will dog him throughout his campaign. Bernie, the other poll leader, has similar baggage when it comes to women. The odds just improved for the younger, more wakened candidates.
8
@Towansa Whitby
"...similar baggage when it comes to women." Are you referring to Bernie or Donnie ?
@Towansa Whitby
You are right about Biden but Bernie doesn’t have the same issue. No more than Kamala Harris or Amy Klobuchar or Kirsten Gillibrand.
1
"I'm sorry for the way she got treated"? How about, I'm sorry for the way I treated her. His attitude is disgusting.
26
I wish Ms. Hill could have the grace and forbearance to forgive and forget this and move on.
She does not deserve a national stage considering the shape the nation is in.
I wish the Dimocrats would embrace Ronald Reagan's "Thou shalt not criticize a fellow...."
We are going to end up with a party infected with Kuru and a Trump win in 2020.
Imagine a Supreme court with seven Trump appointees.
Some triumph for the pure and righteous in a new Republic of Gilead.
5
@Lawrence But if she stopped squeaking about it, she'd lose the front page and the audience. How many people are still eagerly watching Roseanne, Murphy Brown, Cheers, Home Improvement, Designing Women, Major Dad ?
Biden is incapable of owning up to his mistakes (let’s also not forget that Biden was caught for plagiarism in the past). Apart from his half hearted (read insincere) call to Ms. Anita Hill - he also never offered an unconditional apology for his “unwelcome physical overtures” to women. He evaded accountability by blaming “changing social norms” and then later made light of the whole issue by cracking some cringeworthy jokes.
True leaders readily admit their mistakes, apologize and display humility. Biden just doesn’t get it and that’s why he is not a leader.
16
@Raj Sinha Reading that list of "episodes," I thought at first you were referring to Donald... half-hearted apology, unwelcome physical overtures and making cringeworthy jokes about them.
Are you seriously offering the "display of humility" award to our President for "readily admitting his mistakes"?
Simply, one is good man and he's running for President.
This sounds like what happens when you make a complaint to a company about a product or service. The representative says “I’m sorry that you are not satisfied”, carefully making sure that the company is not taking responsibility, but placing the onus on you.
23
''Ms. Boxer said Mr. Biden should be viewed by women for the totality of his record."
This is the crux of the matter. Single issue voters do a disservice to the country, and in part, those kind of blinders on the Democratic side is what helped elect Trump. I'd like to think that Biden is the closest thing we have to a Franklin Roosevelt, but with blue collar roots. We need someone who's really committed to shoring up the middle class, and an experienced leader who can return the US to some level of respect on the international scene.
What you don't want is a far-left liberal in the driver's seat. We've got them in Seattle, and they're trouncing the city's middle-class core.
5
@Mary Ann "Biden is the closest thing we have to a Franklin Roosevelt"
Are you aware of how the GOP screamed about the "left-wing, radical, socialist" Franklin D Roosevelt ?
Same story. Some people are so afraid of losing their privileged status ....
@Mary Ann
This isn't the "single issue" you dismissively call Bidene's response or lack of it to Anita Hill. I've no idea whether you actually saw what transpired, but her courage was remarkable. And that committee denigrated her painful testimony. Joe Biden is quite likable, but this isn't a "single issue." He and the committee humiliated Anita Hill, who, thank goodness, went on to have a sterling career. What a spine she has. Similarly, we recently had another flawed nominee for Supreme Court justice ratified. Had Kavanaugh just admitted that in his callow youth, he did some really awful things, I would have accepted him as a justice I don't like, but could respect -- a little. By 1991, we women were fighting hard for the kind of respect afforded Clarence Thomas. There's no reason whatsoever for Biden to claim it was a different era. It wasn't.
Here we go again, eating our own. The Democrats are determined to lose another election just to preserve the feelings of the social justice warriors. I am sick of this grudge-holding in which nothing is ever forgotten, nothing is ever forgiven even after nearly 30 years. I ask you, men and women, how many of you never made a decision or acted in a way you regretted? If so, give yourself a pat on the back and a nomination for sainthood.
In fact, of course, not everyone agreed that Anita Hill was treated unfairly. I happened to watch the hearings. I believed every word she said. Moreover, I despised Clarence Thomas for his conservative ideas. But I did not think that Hill’s accusations were decisive evidence against his confirmation. They were about the past. They were mainly about talk and not at all about his judicial abilities, about which there was surely some more suitable evidence. Moreover, in the interests of furthering her own career, she had clearly gone along with the talk enough to encourage him to keep doing it.
The MeToo movement has made it okay for the world to judge all he-said, she-said situations in favor of the woman and that is not only unfair in terms of adjudication but also in human terms. Let us please establish some sort of fairness along with a reasonable statute of limitations about such accusations.
8
Just an observation about the notion of a statute of limitations. As I’m sure you are aware, there is not a single MeToo “social justice warrior” who will accept an attempt at balance if it includes a statute of limitations, either legally or in spirit. In fact, removing all statutes of limitation is - whether one likes it or not - critical to making it a viable social movement, one that is successful because it allows mature women with past experiences to come forward after hiding for many years. The balance you seek will only come in another generation or two - this is here to stay.
4
@Margaret Jay 100% agree. My comments are below from another post:
Another reason why Trump very well may win in 2020. Democrats are digging into Joe Biden's actions in 1991 whereas Republicans (and many voters) could care less. Voters do not care about Joe Biden's current opinions on Anita Hill in 1991, seriously, enough with this. Instead of focusing on the plans for America's improvement people are talking about what Joe Biden said on a daytime talk show regarding something that happened almost 30 years ago. I'm embarrassed for the party that I've been a part of in the past but am quickly becoming disillusioned with ever since the gross mismanagement in 2016.
1
@Margaret Jay
All I asked of the repulsive Clarence Thomas was for him to admit that Anita Hill was telling the truth because we knew she was. All I ask now of Joseph Biden is that he admit that he and the committee humiliated the very brave Anita Hill. All I asked of Brett Kavanaugh was that he admit that he'd been a sorry wastrel in his youth. But no. We are still getting the same old, same old defensiveness.
I wish that some of the name-calling and blaming tactics weren't off the wall in some cases, ruining the reputation of good people. But I am ashamed of how the Senate treated Anita Hill and that man, Joe Biden, with a lovely wife and gorgeous grandchildren, a supposedly devout Catholic, needs to be honest with himself if not with us.
It’s a pity Biden couldn’t find his way to apologize. Not only because of the long term effect on the court of the Clarence Thomas appointment. Young people are not afraid to apologize, to accept the world as a place needing more honesty. Biden has shown at this very late stage in his political career that he is not tuned to the needs of the next generation, which will likely decide the next primary season.
7
What people arguing about the basic decency of Joe Biden, and the unfairness they think he is being subjected to miss an important point.
None of that matters. Whether he is being fairly or unfairly criticized, he can't win against Trump. Refusing to just apologize is not only wrong, it's utterly fatal for a candidate for President in the United States of America in 2020. Echoes of the arrogance we saw from the coronation of Hillary. Are we really going to make the same mistake again?
12
Sorry SJW but intentions do matter. No intention is called an accident.
1
@willt26
And how do you know what his intention was. People have all kind of kinks and fetishes that an outsider is not aware of. Once is accident but it’s not an accident when it happens at repeatedly and regularly.
Anita Hill Anita Hill Anita Hill.. man what is with the press ... yes he messed up with her ... but how about the fact that his first fundraiser the hosts were the head of Independence Health Group ( Blue Cross ) & the head of Comcast. Forget about Medicare For All with this guy. How about asking why he supports raising the defense budget every year, now 715 Billion. How about asking about the deficit 22 trillion & counting. His stand on Israel, Iran, Yemen, Syria. What he would do about college tuition. The environment. The ever widening income gap .... no the media keeps harping on Anita Hill. The truth he would do nothing and just continue the status quo. On top of the fact he looks & acts every bit his age and of course the groping ... Ask some questions .. please
12
Biden needs to step aside for the new generations. Come on
13
He jumped right in and they took care of him all right... I think he should go back home before it gets ugly.
12
What a difference a day made.
Joe Biden deified in yesterday's column by David Brooks now vilified over his handling of the Clarence Thomas confirmation hearings.
5
It's very uncomfortable watching so many people project their anger at the perpetrators of sexual violence onto Joe Biden.
5
Joe Biden appears to have a lead v trump in the 2020 presidential race.
Quick, run very fast fellow progressives, advance the circular firing squad, ready, aim, fire, he's dead in the water.
7
Oh what a good look Joe. Barbecue your rep with women before your campaign even kicks off in earnest.
WE NEED THE NEXT GENERATION, not Trump’s generation.
7
the dems need someone who does NOT apologize for anything just like Trump never apologizes for anything. Biden also needs to hire Jeff Ross to come up with roasting material for Trump.
3
Here’s a question for those who watched the hearing like I did and are hot and bothered now (and somehow not bothered in 2008 when Obama picked him?) about Biden not calling more witnesses for Anita Hill:
Do you remember which GOP Senator rattled his jacket and insinuated that he had other papers in his breast pocket that would discredit her testimony? Do you really think the Republicans on that committee weren’t prepared to drag her through the mud — whether it was real mud or not — to get their nominee approved? Then there’s Justice Thomas’ “high-tech lynching” screed, which stunned the all-white panel and the viewers. Game over right then.
Please remember this was 1991, when pubic hairs on a coke can were actually shocking for most viewers and not a topic discussed on daytime television, much less during a Senate confirmation hearing for a SCOTUS nominee. This hearing was only going to get uglier and more graphic.
If Prof. Hill wants a “real” apology, she should demand it from Justice Thomas and the GOP Senators who really dragged her name through the mud. Biden didn’t. He didn’t vote for Thomas either.
9
Right. We get the logic. Hill bad and evil. Biden good and wholesome. So vote for Joe. Uh-uh. Not a chance.
6
Same old, same old.
5
His refusal to apologize to AH is of a piece with his refusal to apologize for sniffing and groping women. He feels justified in doing what he wants to do. Sees apologizing as a weakness.
7
Are we still gnawing on this bone? Its been going on since the Kavanaugh confirmation.
Anita Hill is not satisfied with what happened. And at the time Clarence Thomas said his hearing was a lynching.
1
Democrats, remember that despite the fact that Joe Biden isn't perfect (who is?), if he's the nominee we have to get behind him.
The alternative is four more years of a lawless, criminal autocrat.
6
trump has already won. he can only be stopped by impeachment and coviction. even then he has the military and the cops and he will turn them on his critics.
2
@Vet you seem to think not just that the majority of voters agree with you but, equally important, that the next election is tomorrow.
1
Why should he apologize to Hill? What did he do wrong other than being a man?
2
There go his shot at the election. I bet the big donors he lined up already want their money back.
4
@Amy Like it or not, Amy, his donors were not unaware of the Anita Hill moment when they chose to back him, and simply recalling it on the Late News tomorrow night is not going to make a big difference.
Anita Hill needs to get over it. Donald Trump is a madman and needs to be stopped. if Biden is the one to do it, so be it. We face an existential threat to our democracy that outweighs sore feelings from years ago.
9
I am sure that he would be better than Trump, but geez ... I really hope it's not him. I am so tired of ... his generation.
8
@david martin Sorry, David. I am of his generation, and I never tire of being here.
I suspect that the number of major headlines separating "Joe Biden Declines to Directly Apologize to Anita Hill..." and "Biden Campaign Announces Suspension of Pay For All Nonessential Campaign Workers..." are somewhat fewer than one might think.
2
@Bret And I suspect that all this noise in April of 2019 will simply be static in November of 2020. And very few people are interested in hearing static.
Vote Republican and put Russia first
Or Choose Biden and put ‘America’ first.
No one else even has a fighting chance of prying America out of the hands of its enemies.
.
3
What upsets me about Biden's "apology" is his refusal to own events. "I'm sincerely sorry for what you went through" (I'm paraphrasing) is not at all the same as, "I sincerely regret what I allowed to happen."
4
I don't get it. Why is Ms. Hill angry at Biden? It was Clarence Thomas that she had accused of sexual harassment. NOT Biden. At the Senate Judiciary Committee's hearings for the nomination of Clarence Thomas to the Supreme Court, Anita Hill was considered a "hostile witness". She didn't want to be there. But Thomas being appointed to the Supreme Court was of paramount importance to the country. Was Clarence Thomas the right man to replace Thurgood Marshall? Anita Hill had worked with Thomas. She knew him well. She had later become a respected law professor. Her opinion at the time mattered to the nation. Why is Biden now expected to apologize to her? How did he end up being the one who wronged her? Apparently Ms. Hill thinks Biden, as chairman of the Senate committee, did not rein in "Alan Simpson and Orrin Hatch and Arlen Specter in terms of the [hostile] cross-examination" from those Republicans (Washington Post, Nov. 22, 2017). This appears to be a case where the facts have been twisted to portray Biden as some kind of sexual harasser, rather than the accused Clarence Thomas. Nor was he among the hostile questioners, who were from the opposite political party. We could make a list of the people involved in that hearing who made a mockery of our Constitution's evolving principles. But Biden would not be on that list. He has nothing to apologize for, and did as well as anyone could have done.
9
@Gary
Biden consciously aided a cover up of Thomas's actions. Biden was on the wrong side, aiding a sexual harraser in order to support the old boy network for his own political gain. He knew Thomas was guilty and he worked for and with the Republicans so he could call in favors from them later. He's not a good guy. He knew what he was doing and he knew he could get away with it. He has no character.
1
Watch the videos. Biden’s behavior towards Professor Hill was condescending, racist and sexist. In a word, disgraceful. He showed himself to be a very bad guy, and his inability to apologize shows that he hasn’t changed.
1
Watch the videos. Biden’s behavior towards Hill was beneath contempt — disgraceful in the extreme. Dig it: he’s a bad guy.
1
Biden is stubborn.
This is bad.
He had months - years really - to consider how he would deal with this if he ran for president.
He's blowing it.
15
@fast/furious
Decades, actually . . .
Do you really think that progressive women will stand still and quiet while the party's apologists ram touchy-feely same-old-stuff Joe down their throats? Stay tuned.
9
@Denny Nabe and you are speaking for all progressive women...because? This progressive woman does not remember Anita Hill and does not care about this or that apology. I want the good economy to continue but without Trump’s unpredictable antics. I want a rational and informed foreign policy. I want my reproductive rights to be defended. And I won’t vote for a “democratic socialist” who will destroy the economy. Biden seems fine to me. I would rather have Mayor Pete but if Biden is the nominee, I’ll have no problem voting for him.
1
Now that's the old-man-white-American we know and love talking. Sort of "sorry, but not really". Or at least don't want to say it case other old white Americans are offended. Change? More like: innovation without change. Let's face it, if we can vote for Joe, we could have voted for Hillary. Or Howard Schultz.
4
The crucial difference between Biden and Sanders - only one can potentially win if nominated. Biden is heartland America and is widely respected in key parts of the country that decided 2016 and will again in 2020. If Sanders were to somehow wind up the nominee, watch the Republicans do what they do best — Socialism Swift Boat him into political oblivion by striking fear and misinformation into the minds of voters everywhere.
8
@Michael Actually Sanders is doing just fine striking fear into the minds of informed voters on his own. His economic policies would be a disaster, his foreign policy ditto, and as for socialism, it was not Trump who called him a socialist, it was Sanders himself.
1
Like it or not, Biden is currently the best man out their for the job as President. He has political experience (including in the White House), and overall is a better candidate than just about all the others.
5
Three cheers for Biden. After all, and before the rest.
For those born perfect, so much the better for them. Let’s research and patent the perfection gene and be sure the government - query which branch - controls it.
3
Three words is all he needed: I am sorry.
Now, two words will haunt him: Big mistake.
Politicians make mistakes. Apologize, fix what you can and move forward. He took several steps back instead. I don’t understand who is advising him. Obviously no one with the least bit of common sense.
7
Amazing, I saw the show, and cannot believe I am in such a small NY Times comment minority to say that he did a fantastic job in the interview.
6
Will Joe Biden apologize to all of us for putting Clarence Thomas on the Supreme Court? Because that’s exactly what he did. And he calls himself a Democrat? Please...
5
Didn’t he vote against Thomas’s confirmation?
While I respect Biden for not apologizing if he feels he didn't do anything wrong, I disagree with him. However, I have chaired enough committees to know that when something unexpected comes up and you're not well prepared it is easy to make mistakes, and I think he did. What's important to me though, is how he presents himself in the primaries and how he compares with the others in terms of the ability to beat Trump. There's no Democrat in this primary group that I wouldn't vote for against Trump and I hope others feel the same way.
4
It’s a fair criticism to look at the record of any person who has been in the public eye as long as Joe Biden. But I don’t think many people realize that times have changed. No human is imperfect or without flaws- Joe has been honest and open about how he has made mistakes, without backtracking just to please people.
Let’s think about the greater good concept here folks- honestly ask yourself- is the world better for having a public servant like Joe Biden in it?
The answer is Yes. He’s held high office, passed more meaningful legislation (bad and good) and is well respected by the international community than anyone in the field. He’ll also roll over trump in the ‘battleground’ states. He’s also worked across the isle- a lost part of what makes democracy great.
7
Thanks to the division in the 2016 Democratic Party, Trump's election, and his two new Supreme Court Justices, there is no foreseeable chance that Citizens United will be overturned. Money is speech, and the Republicans are going to rake it in. Not taking big money is tying Democrats' hands behind their back in the 2020 election. Trump has raised $30 million for 2020.
Biden raised more money ($6.3 million) than any other candidate in the first 24 hours. and only $700,000 came from the big fundraisers. 97% of the online donations were under $200, and the average was $41.
The circular firing squad is forming, and most of the bullets are coming from the left. We need to stop taking shots at the Democratic candidates and decide who is the best candidate to beat Trump through a discussion of the positions of the various candidates and keep the fire on Trump.
Unfortunately, Democrats blew it when they divided in 2016 and elected our wannabe dictator. Another 4 years of Trump, or any Republican, would be even more disasterous. We can't blow it again. Democrats have to be smart this time.
7
Attacking or scrutinizing Biden for not doing or saying things the way some would prefer while helpful to point out how one can better evolve is also very shortsighted, missing the much bigger and more consequential picture.
I don't recall people going ballistic on Obama or any other politician before they finally came around on marriage equality, or on Clinton for don't ask don't tell. #metoo is an infancy movement -- no one started it 20+ years ago over Anita Hill because that's apparently not where the culture was at.
Like Biden or not, think he's flawed or not, we're in a crisis and any one of these candidates would be a 500% improvement over what we have now -- so everyone needs to pull it together and unite around the common cause that will lead to better days for everyone's relevant issues. Or please, continue nitpicking, bickering and berating at all of our peril.
7
I admit, there's nothing Biden can say at this point that will change my mind about his treatment of Anita Hill. He's shown he doesn't "get it," in spite of all his claims to the contrary and I'm tired of listening to him try to justify his behavior.
But in addition to how he treated Hill, by denying her the right to call witnesses and shutting down the hearing with some secret agreement apparently agreed to in the Senate (all male) gym, what I also resent is that he gave the nation Clarence Thomas, a man so ill-suited for his position that he rarely even speaks.
I see Thomas, along with Biden's treatment of Hill and his vote in support of the war on Iraq, as part of Biden's living legacy. And from what he says, he apparently has no regrets. If he wins the nomination, I will find it very hard to support him in the general.
10
Far more concerned with the fact that he is a do nothing corporate hack.
9
@MDM hey, he's not Trump, which is all anyone seems to care about
1
Give equal time to every case of female abuse by Trump!
8
@Jean and you'll be as dismissive of them as you are to Professor Hill?
1
I share all voiced concerns and agree with many, but NEVER let us make a moral equivalence between Joe's slightly dated views on women and Trump's vulgar lifelong hateful abuse.
One man has a warm heart and DJT has cruel and crippled relationship with others.
14
It's so easy in hindsight to judge people from the high perch of observer. It wasn't Joe Biden's fault that in 1991 there were only two women in the United States Senate and zero African Americans. But it was his responsibility to keep a hearing that pitted an African American man being accused of sexual-related offenses by an African-American, viewed presided over by a panel of old white men and viewed by a nation of gawkers and to see to it that it was fair and did not become a circus. You could say he failed at that mission, but I'm not sure that anybody would have performed much better.
6
Did he have to resort to insults?
@sethblink, well, he had a chance to make it right and ducked. That's not hindsight. That's now. How hard would it have been to say he was sorry? If other have the guts to tear down statutes of RE Lee for being the racist traitor that he was, surely Joe could have the guts to say he was sorry.
3
Clarence Thomas never should have been confirmed. Aside from Ms Hill's statements (which I believed then and now) he was the LOWEST rated by the American Bar Association EVER to that date. Biden bungled the hearings and was far too conciliatory in bowing to republicans. Has he learned his lessons. Dunno?
9
That is telling who uncle Joe is and what you can expect as a president , we already have a rude ,bully and sexist man in the White House , we don't need another one , we need to restore civility in this country.
We all saw how mr Biden treated Ms Hill , it was plainly wrong , and Mr Biden gave us Clarence Thomas the same way Grassley gave us Kavanaught (I like beer) in case you forgot , I am a man and not that young and agreed that Joe Biden owe Ms Hill an apology , and if his ego are that big , he won't get my vote , on the other end , Mayor Pete start to look really good.
5
Go ahead and pick Biden to death. We need four more years of Trump to finish the job of trashing our country. So put your need ahead of the country. You did it for Bernie and you can do it again.
And better yet stay home and don’t vote like you did in 2016.
7
If he's not big enough to apologize to Anita Hill he's not big enough for the office of the Presidency. We don't want more tone deaf big egos in the White House. Bye Joe.
14
In exchange, the Dem circular firing squad, as principled as it may seem, will assure you get a tone-deaf big ego re-elected.
The culprit in the Thomas-Hill hearings it Thomas. The fact that they held hearings in 1991 was progress in itself. Senator Biden wasn't one of the eleven D's who voted to confirm Justice Thomas. This story is being resurrected as if Sen. Biden was the focus? Justice Thomas owes the apology here.
10
@Basic I couldn't agree with you more. Clarence Thomas should have been the one to apologize to Ms. Hill. Why does Biden gets blame for it. I don't get it!!
But Biden did call Hill and apologized to her. She didn't accept his apology nor should she when it came three decades after the fact.
5
Actually, he did not apologize and is making it clear that he does not intend to apologize. People are debating whether that matters. But let’s not try to pretend that he apologized. He didn’t.
5
@Iris Burke He shouldn't apologize. We need a Democrat to stand firm for once. This is getting ridiculous. Everyone has to apologize to everyone publicly in the past 40 years apparently. This is not like Japan apologizing to China over slaughtering their population.
@Iris Burke
He called her on the first day of his presidential campaign.
“I cannot be satisfied by simply saying, ‘I’m sorry for what happened to you,’” said Ms. Hill, now a professor of social policy, law and women’s studies at Brandeis University. “I will be satisfied when I know that there is real change and real accountability and real purpose.”
I'm glad that Biden declined to directly apologize to Hill. He has said numerous times he regrets how he handled the hearings. We can't endlessly re-litigate the past as Progressives would have us do. If the left had their way Biden would be on a non stop apology tour. It's never going to happen. It's over lets move on. Biden has the best chance to beat Trump. There will be tremendous push back from the left who believe he is too old, too white to run. Good. Lets bring into the open the unapologetically racist, sexist, ageist so called Democrats ( a small minority I believe) who are holding the party hostage. Why is the left so desperate? Why don't they want Biden to run? Because he's going to drive progressive favorites like Booker, Harris, Sanders and Warren out of the race. Pretty early too. The primaries favor Biden. Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, & South Carolina. The other candidates will run out of time, money, & support long before the next primary which is Super Tuesday. It's obvious that progressives have been trying to steer the nominee process. Guess what the smear campaign isn't going to work.The Progressive obsession with cheap shooting Biden, a man with good intentions has compelled many people to question the value of their movement. Is this how the left intends to unite the party? To win the nomination? This is political correctness has run-amok. Progressives worship at this Altar. Voters really despise this. Keep this up & we will lose in 2020.
10
@Bill Brown 100% agree. He shouldn't apologize. We need a Democrat to stand firm for once. This is getting ridiculous. Everyone has to apologize to everyone publicly in the past 40 years apparently. This is not like Japan apologizing to China over slaughtering their population. Democrats need to focus on other issues, the actual issues voters care about instead of debating what he said on daytime tv.
it is a jarring deja vu. He is the HRC candidacy of 2020 with decades of baggage and a consistent ability to make public gaffes. if elected, he will lose. please NYT, do the right thing, and call him out for his years as a corporate sycophant. within a decade, climate change and artificial intelligence will utterly transform the world in which we live. We need a smart, younger candidate who gets these issues.
7
Why can Biden not say, "I am sorry. I was wrong." This is what morally mature people do when they understand the pain their actions have caused--they take responsibility. He might then earn my vote and the votes of many other people who appreciate that humans can learn from their mistakes and evolve. This is all worse than if he had said nothing at all. What an embarrassment and a revelation.
Time for new blood.
12
but wait a minute. Clarence Thomas sexually offended Ms. Hill NOT Biden. all of a sudden we became conditioned to thinking Joe is the one to be blamed!!
Everything considered, Biden is simply not qualified to represent Democrats as our presidential candidate. He's probably a nice guy, but we're not looking for a placeholder who's a nice guy. We need a thoughtful, informed leader, capable of bringing reality to American politics.
Republicans have trashed America. We need men and women willing to -- and capable of -- repairing the damage and competently restoring America's potential for greatness.
Sorry, Joe... you've had your shot. Either pitch in and help us get our country back, or ride your rocking chair into the sunset.
8
Folks, the Husband, a raging, lifelong Independent, just told me that of course he would NEVER vote for Trump ( that's grounds for divorce ). But, he also was certain that the only Democrat he would Vote for is Joe Biden. Houston, we've got a problem. Let this play out, and let the process work. Fair and Square. The mere thought of Trump for another term should be an extreme wake-up call, for ALL of us. I'm awake.
2
Your husband needs to look more closely at the world.
@Phyliss Dalmatian
Thank you, Phyliss, for your posts. This New Yorker appreciates your candor, sense of humor and common sense. Good luck with The Husband.
You sound like a real person from a real town, not like these fake name posters from fake cities, like “Odysseus” from “Home Again.” Seems like the disinformation campaign is alive and well and not just limited to Facebook.
@Barbara
Ditto. I agree with what you've said and I am now a confirmed fan of Phyliss Dalmatian and her full of common sense husband. She does seem like a real person, doesn't she? Maybe she'll visit our city some time and we can all plan strategy in some very comfortable restaurant.
Phyliss, I told a good friend this afternoon about your dream ticket, and he was entirely dismissive of it. I agree it's a dream, but not with my friend's calling Harris "a lightweight." If Elizabeth Warren were electable, I'd go along with my friend, but just because a person speaks so all can understand her doesn't mean she's less capable. Who among us wouldn't want Elizabeth Warren to be president? Many, unfortunately. I think Harris conveys warmth along with purpose and I think, too, she would pick capable and honest advisers. Your proposed ticket would attract, I believe, the younger generations and yet not turn off the oldsters. I'm an oldster. They don't turn me off.
In playing the victim for 30 years, Anita Hill has grown a shell of prickly self-righteousness. What has she done to help all of us move beyond what happened then so that we can come together now to “save the soul of the country,” as Biden so aptly put it. Instead, she got her moment of public revenge by refusing his apology, inadequate as it may have been. This was a teachable moment, Professor, and you failed to rise to the occasion when it finally presented itself.
7
It is time to give Barack Obama full credit for being the political genius that he is. In my mind I envision Obama's most trusted advisers brainstorming together over who his running mate should be after he won the nomination. They review the record of numerous candidates and finally get to Biden who had also run. They watch the video of Biden grilling Anita Hill and all agree this is terrible. They review the crime bill also concluding this was tone deaf and horrible. They listen to the audio of Biden talking about how he would never allow his blond haired blue eyed son to be bused to a Black school and everyone is stunned into silence. Finally someone breaks the quiet by saying this is our guy. Everyone else in the room breaths a sigh of relief and agrees. High fives and fist bumps all around. As we all know now history is then made. Joe Biden ideal political wing man but less than ideal Presidential candidate. I doubt things get any better from here.
2
Your perspective is fascinating! Thank you.
I watched the show. He did not do well, stumbling over his thoughts and words. I can't understand why he is so intentional about using the passive voice in his non-apology to Anita Hill. Why not just say it? I believe he will regret his words. Also, he find a way to give a direct apology to the women he made uncomfortable with uninvited touch. He insists that he did not intend to make them uncomfortable, so they should just understand, forgive and shut up. Just apologize in a first person active voice, for goodness sake.
90
@OutNProud
If Biden believed Hill, as he claims, that means he believed Thomas committed perjury but let his nomination go forward anyway.
There's no way to apologize that away. Thomas has damaged the country for decades and will continue to do so for years to come.
It didn't have to be this way.
7
@OutNProud
So he should just follow your prescribed language and behavior. Does this (PC) rule apply to the rest of us, or just politicians? One thing Joe Biden demonstrated: he's no hypocite.
@OutNProud Party loyalists like you certainly make the case for open primaries to stop the #VoterSuppression of more than 30% of the voting population, and the ability to vote strictly for the candidates based on what they actually stand for. Total public funding of elections would bring out the best instead of the WORST candidates. The USA has made bribery legal -- just use your political connections to rake in millions of dollars from big donors like Verizon, Comcast, Bank of America and then push whatever legislation they write. Princeton University did an extensive study and found that almost nothing that is popular with the people becomes law, but what the 1% wealthiest want becomes law more than 95% of the time. I seriously blame the Democrats as much as the Republicans. Our founding fathers were very hesitant about political parties. They did not like them: Too much power given to the party rather than the nation and the good of all people, not just party insiders.
1
Do you really think this is something voters care about? Probably most don’t even remember her.
2
This is the start of people not liking him, the way they didn't like Hillary.
Unfortunately Biden couldn't figure it out himself, so he needs to be told: "no", bluntly and definitively.
3
This seems to be analogous to saying
"I will pay the fine without admitting guilt".
1
And what about Clarence Thomas in all of this? Doesn't he owe Anita hill and others including all who listened so intently and cared an apology. My concerns do not lie with joe Biden
4
biden has shown that he is incapable of making amends for HIS conduct or ineptitude or abilities. he infers that the bad conduct was the fault of others. thus, he is a phony loud and clear.
5
One, if he is the Dem nominee OF COURSE I will vote for him. Pouting has never been my electoral style.
Two, I am disgusted that Dem politicians must be on a constant public apology tour. So good on Joe, opting for a private apology instead.
Three, in said private apology, active voice matters. “I am sorry for how you got treated” = “Mistakes were made.” Fifty-something years in public life and he hasn't learned that?
4
It would be wrong for Biden to apologize for Hill's unsubstantiated and outrageous claims.
4
This idea of zero tolerance is not something I do agree with. Biden made a big mistake years ago in the Thomas hearing, but these same mistakes were repeated in the Kavanaugh hearings. Sometime on the future these claims by women will be heard and acted upon. So what are we to do.
2
Because he's terrible now, just as he was terrible then. And he was a do-nothing and disappointing VP. He can just GO AWAY. As a young professional woman, I remember listening to those hearings on NPR, and I've never forgiven him. HIs comments today told me that he's learned nothing, and he is obliviously still centered on himself, a privilege few women get to have. If he'd taken his good will to go out and try to lift the party to support local, state and national candidates, he might've had a way back to my (likely grudging) respect. Since I was a kid helping my grandmother stuff envelopes at the Democratic Women's group in my hometown, I've been a grassroots activist for all level of Dems, even imperfect. But how much passion I can bring, and how many people I can thus motivate to join me by being active & voting, will be at risk. We need a candidate that will get the young/diverse Dems that stayed home to come out to vote, not those Dems and others who chose DJT.
5
If Biden really meant it, he would have contacted Anita Hill years ago. Instead he goes for a superficial election stunt. He’s Jeb Bush II and will be out by the New Hampshire primary.
9
There is a place for Joe Biden, a man of great sensitivity, experience and heart in the Democratic Party. He has much to still offer. His place is not as president, and I feel this interview underscored it. If this is the energy and focus of the real Joe Biden, another run for president is not the right move.
1
Anita Hill is further exacerbating the divisions in the Dem party in her rebuke of Biden. What does she hope to achieve?
If Biden is not the winning ticket, when will Hill endorse whoever she thinks has a chance to defeat Trump?
Remember when Ann Coulter KNEW Trump was going to win, early in the contest, and out-of-touch Nate Silver the liberal pollster, could not sense it...
3
When I saw Joe Biden on the View today, I realized that he doesn't really have what it takes to be President. In 1991 he could have used his power to dignify Anita Hill but he chose not to do so. I watched the hearing and thought is was a travesty. If he ends up running after all against Trump, I'll vote for Trump.
5
If Biden can't understand and acknowledge that the treatment of Anita Hill was wrong, then he really should not be running for President. A mea culpa would go a long way for women voters who are so tired of the pervasive sexism we suffer every day. I don't know yet if he is the right choice for the Democratic nomination, but I do know that he needs the women's vote and I really doubt he will get enough of it unless he shows that he understands now that he was wrong. It's really as simple as that. Women will be forgiving if we see that -- enough, perhaps, to get him elected at least.
2
@JRW
Apparently in his world, apologies are perceived as 'weak'. He doesn't get that, in the world of women,
an honest and sincere apology is a sign of strength.
3
Maybe it's because it happened five years before I was born, but I really don't care much about how the Thomas confirmation hearings were handled. It's in the distant past. It can't be changed. I doubt any apology would be enough for people who still care about almost 30 years later. And it's certainly not going to have any impact on how I vote next year.
3
@Aiya
It would be the distant past had he apologized, but he didn't. If someone ran over you in some way and later said he it was a shame to see you so sad, would you take that for an apology?
For an apology to be meaningful it must contain a statement of what was unacceptable about the behavior and acceptance of responsibility for it occurring. That should be followed by a specific enumeration of the damage done and a credible promise not to do such actions again. Vaguely alluding to harm is not the same as taking responsibility for it.
Trump doesn't acknowledge any harm; Biden doesn't take responsibility for it.
4
It's not about the 30 past years , it's about the next 5 years and this is the same guy.
As a woman, I will vote for someone who is in keeping with the times and not for a man who just does not get it. Boy, there sure are a lot of them!
7
The sadistic need of many to demand to see a public shaming is what probably led to hari kari in Japan. Luckily for Joe it’s only an American Election and all he has to commit is to the view crew.
1
I think Joe Biden should be focusing on taking on Trump and not run for President. The same goes for Bernie Sanders. Joe and Bernie should use there political capital and skills to help get rid of a deranged President.
That way the other candidates can focus on the election while Joe and Bernie can take on Trump.
5
Millennium like Bernie , it's a good enough reason for me.
2
Senator Biden was doing his job as Committee chairman. He did nothing wrong. He does not owe Ms. Hill an apology for doing his job. Enough - move on.
9
Sorry Joe. This is karma...much as I don't really believe in the concept...Otherwise, how do we explain all the fraudsters, bankster/gangster who just keep winning? I like and respect and Joe Biden for his public service, and all his good words, good deeds, and if he is the nominee, I'll be happy to vote for him. But I'm glad to see Anita Hill speak out about this. I know he got steamrolled by the GOP in those hearings, but his behavior in that hearing was awful. Bottom line, It's time for a changing of the guard. Long ago, I had a typing exercise where you had to type out this phrase...it's not a bumper sticker, not a campaign slogan, "“Now is the time for all good men to come to the aid of their country." No matter what side of the fence you're sitting on...
3
Now that there is no difference between a touch on the elbow and groping, there seems to be no apology which will satisfy. Will reparations soon be the next step?
1
Biden was the chairmen of the committee and doesn't seem to realize that he was responsible for the way she was treated. He had the power to stop it but didn't. He allowed the republicans to run roughshod over her while Thomas was treated like a god.
14
I like Uncle Joe has much as the average voter, but the Anita Hill Hearing did not show him to be an impartial leader. I recall Ms. Hill had several women witnesses that wanted to testify in her favor, and Uncle Joe refused. Seems he had made an agreement with Senator Danfort (Missouri, I think), in the men's gymnasium. When stories like these come out, others might find him 'likeable' but not presidential.
4
Joe Biden is likable. I like him. But the Anita Hill hearings were a blight on our culture and our history and Biden cannot walk away from it casually if he is going to run for President. Prof Hill deserves a full apology. And, besides, as nice a guy as I'm sure Biden may be, he is not my choice and I don't quite understand why he now the Democratic Party's front runner. He's got some very real and very strong competition and the primaries should play out before we put him on some sort of pedestal. Yes, we want the candidate who can beat Trump, but we should also want the best candidate.
10
Vice President Joe Biden is running for the presidency. Since he has been a US Senator for 36 years and U.S.VP for 8 years, he has to maintain a slightly higher dignity than other presidential hopefuls. He has said enough in the form of apology to Ms. Anita Hill. He should not "stoop" any further. Ms. Hill ought to be gracious to accept what he said. This is a free country. She has a right to refuse to accept Mr. Biden's statement on it.
About touching women affectionately in public in a NON-sexual way, he has said enough. He should not say anything more in the form of an apology.
The "Me-Too" movement has gone a little too far. True, women & girls have been treated atrociously by society from time immemorial. That doesn't mean we ought to accept as fact that anything a woman demands must be just.
Kristen Gillibrand went overboard in ousting a great Senator. Angie Dickinson was quite upset over the intensity of the Me-Too movement. A modest amount of moderation is needed now.
8
@A.G.
How exactly does someone determine 'non-sexual' touch ? The pictures of Biden nuzzling, smooching, etc. certainly seem to at least fall into the 'sensual ' category.
And if another male primate was observed by an impartial behavioral scientist doing the following : approaching a female from behind, restraining said female (e.g. by 'gripping shoulders'), smelling said female's 'fur' (e.g. hair), and then planting his lips on her head, what sort of action would the scientist expect to follow ? That's right, an attempt at mating.
But if it's "affectionate" and it's Joe Biden's behavior, apparently that's perfectly OK.
Perhaps Biden should hold a press conference and offer an all-inclusive mea culpa for past, present and future tansgressions. Seriously Dems, while Trump is having a blast destroying the country, you're arguing about what Biden did or didn't do or say 40 years ago or whether he apologized enough? Maybe you want to keep losing.
And by the way, where was the outrage when Obama picked him for VP in 2008 and throughout Obama's two terms? Someone please explain this contradiction. I don't care about 1991. We need to move forward and hear what he has to say about the future.
6
Facts:
- three decades ago, a black young woman had the moral courage to publicly speak out about sexual harassment
- although Thomas seemed to be a moderate at the time, this GOP nominee turned out to be one of the strongest anti-women's rights Justices in history, creating a terrible record on this issue
- today, the GOP continues to nominate people who are accused of sexual assault by multiple women, and they continue to use their power in DC to destroy women's rights
- Biden three decades ago tried to handle a highly complicated situation as best as he could. At hindsight, he could have done more to respect Hill's claims - and obviously, the GOP and FBI could have done MUCH more to do so. They didn't.
- since then, Biden not only repeatedly, year after year, felt sorry about what happened, but he also became a champion of women's rights organizations, thanks to an absolutely outstanding record on this issue, both as Senator and as VP.
Conclusion: after a mistake three decades ago, Biden took the moral high road, and improved legislation multiple times. The GOP, however, not only made a worse mistake at the time, as they actually nominated an misogynist Justice, but since then CONSTANTLY doubled down on their deliberate, misogynist policies - including this week at the UN level, where they blocked a resolution that would declare rape as war weapon illegal and increase access to sexual and reproductive HC for its victims.
That's a morally perfectly clear situation.
11
Why should Biden apologize to Anita Hill? She already said that an apology wouldn't be enough. The media is obviously going to hound him about this potentially for the entire length of the campaign if he lets them. He needs to stop talking about it -- he's made his position clear. If journalists and other interrogators can't accept that the Clarence Thomas hearing was a different era, and that the overriding concern was not to appear racist (responding to Thomas's clear implication that anyone who opposed him was) then nothing Biden can say will make any difference.
8
No, no and no. We cannot say Democrats are progressive and principled compared to the GOP and act exactly as the Republican Party does. Biden must not run. What is the point in voting for the same values that we are fighting against. It is time for the liberals to do away with double standards. It’s not just about preventing another term of Trump, it is about changing status quo in the United States. Women matter.
14
@Meena
Biden is called a hero by all women's right organizations because of his outstanding record as Senator and VP for decades already now, whereas the GOP is systematically undoing the progress made thanks to Biden, and somehow you think that "we cannot say Democrats are progressive and principled compared to the GOP and act exactly as the Republican Party does" ... ?
No wonder progress on women's rights is so slow in this country ...
2
It should also be pointed out that Anita Hill has gone on to an illustrious life in academia, while Clarence Thomas, as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court;well there is not much there! Unfortunately, Justice Thomas decisions effect millions of Americans, while Ms. Hill, essentially is a benefit to her students, and those who've read her publications!!!
1
@Counter Measures
This is an unjustified, ad hominem, attack on Mr Thomas.
Here's a list of several hundred Opinions he has written while on the Court.
https://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/justices/thomas.dec.html
And I decline to support him. As my 23-year-old son pointed out prior to this ill-thought through candidacy- "he's already apologizing before he's even announced." The only thing my son got wrong is that sadly, Biden's not even apologizing. Biden's bike has been missing the chain every. time. he. runs.
13
Joe Biden has shown a great deal of empathy for others who have experienced incredible grief in their lives, like he has. It makes his lack of empathy and remorse for the way Anita Hill was treated all the more puzzling. Why is he so resistant to issuing a simple but direct apology?
14
@Mitch
I think he's convinced that, taken the circumstances of three decades ago into account, he truly did what to him seemed best at the time.
And indeed, it's quite easy to judge him at hindsight.
In the meanwhile, his entire career during the last decades is an "apology", as he not only felt sorry and said so, but turned himself into a real champion for women's rights in Congress - as all women's rights organizations have confirmed.
So IF we're interested in women's rights, why are the media and we ourselves not talking about his entire record, and instead prefer to focus on ONE event thirty years ago ... ?
6
@Ana Luisa
Thank you, Ana Luisa. I appreciate what you have written, and as a woman.
1
I really liked Biden's video about white supremacy and how we have to get Trump and his ilk out of power. If he's the nominee I will vote for him.
However, he botched the Clarence Thomas hearing and has not appropriately apologized for his failures at that time. I watched those hearings and was appalled.
I hope someone else is the nominee. But we must remove the Republicans from power, that's the most important thing.
10
No one is perfect. Joe, with his 50-year career, most certainly is not. But he is a moderate - most of the country believe it or not, are also moderates, just not vocal - and IMHO, the person who can beat Trump is the one needed most at this time. I haven't decided myself. There is a long way to go. But Democrats, especially, tend to be their own worst enemy. Case in point: Bernie's supporters who refused to vote for anyone besides him. The far left progressives will have their time (in 2020 or beyond), but WHOEVER can beat Trump is the one I will get behind.
4
@Jennifer
Please! Far more Bernie supporters voted for Hillary in 2016 than Hillary supporters voted for Obama in 2008. Can we just get that part of the record straight - despite the attempts of the Center for American Progress to keep it as a talking point. Their repetition of it does not make it true.
4
I am a lifelong Dem and will never vote for this insincere, disingenuous corporate politician, esp. with the wealth of other qualified candidates out there, & I don't buy that Biden is the only person who can mount a successful challenge to Trump. Let other people sell out if they wish..
18
I am not sure what Mr. Biden could say to Ms. Hill at this point in time. It's been strikingly apparent to a majority of women that Anita Hill was disparaged by Biden and shamed by other members of that committee, all for the purpose of putting a sexual harasser on the Court (and it seemed to me to put an uppity woman of color in per place). What Biden did not directly participate in, he allowed to happen.
Biden seems like a nice man, but I couldn't support Biden or any man on that committee for any elected office. Shameful conduct certainly occurred, but it wasn't on Ms. Hill's part. As far as I know, no one else on the committee has ever apologized to her.
Maybe Bill Clinton would have apologized to Monica Lewinsky if he had run for any kind of office after his presidency. That it was only his wife running for office didn't move him from his dug in position that he apologized to everyone in public globally, and thus his conclusion is he has done his duty. That should be enough. It's not enough. Hiding in the tall grass and then apologizing decades later when you are running for office - it's not enough either.
1
When will these old dinosaurs give it up? "Sorry you were treated badly..." By who, Joe?
Just so, so, so lame.
An honorable man would own up to it and say something like: "I am sorry I trashed you, when I could have chosen to be fair and honest with you, and I know I should have apologized to you decades ago, but my agenda would not have been served, so here I am, saying I'm sorry, now."
Man, no way he'll beat Trump after handling this so poorly.
Next.
13
@Mslattery
An honorable man would not have let himself be bullied into retracting acalling Mike Pence “decent.” Biden has no honor.
1
I think there is nothing wrong with Biden simply saying that he has evolved on women's issues and would do things differently if the issue came up today.
He should say no more about the issue.
If he gets into a pattern of serially apologizing, he might as well quit now.
I seem to recall that Obama apologized once after attending a church for many years where a minister espoused anti-white and antisemitic rhetoric. He went on to be President.
Trump is clearly not one who should be emulated, but he never apologizes and still became President.
Offering endless apologies is a sure loser.
2
Biden will be one of the first Democrats to drop out of the race, and rightly so. Too much baggage.
14
@MMD
What happens then to all the Corporate Cash he's reeling in right now ?
I haven't thought about Anita Hill for many years. Unfortunately, Joe Biden's candidacy has stirred up the anger at how she was treated, anger that was long dormant in many of us, but anger that was never resolved as we watched Clarence Thomas get confirmed on the Court, and have had to live with all that has meant to us as a country.
Joe Biden is a good man, but a flawed man, and his inability to properly understand how his current behavior re-angers so many of us, makes it clear that he's too old and set in his ways to deserve our vote.
There are some terrific Democratic candidates -- I'd love to see Senator Elizabeth Warren and Mayor Pete Buttigieg team up, for starters. There are still some vital ways Joe Biden can serve this country that he loves, just not as our president.
22
@Chrislav
Doubtful that Warren is electable in the states we lost and need for 270 votes. I like her too, but the Midwest will not. My first choice is Buttigieg, but not sure he's electable either. Get back to me when the electoral college is abolished. Also, will Sanders' supporters pout and stay home to protest if he doesn't win the primary? Or vote for Trump?
2
@Chrislav Yes. I agreed when you posted this earlier today and I still do. No need, however, to say it again.
I'll enthusiastically support Joe if he becomes the nominee (I'll enthusiastically support Donald Duck if HE becomes the nominee), but Biden does not serve himself well with his refusal to own what he did (and allowed to be done by others) to Professor Hill, as committee chair of the Thomas hearings. He needs to own it, say how sorry he is to her for his terrible mistake and only then can he really move on from this.
7
@James Mazzarella Whether or not we move on is our business. Whether or not he moves on is his alone.
2
@kenneth Of course it is, and I never said anything different. My point is that he's making a big mistake here, nothing more, nothing less.
I am not a fan of Joe. But enough already trying .to make him apologize for something he has no reason to apologize for. This is an attempt to change the facts of Anita Hills testimony. They found zero collaborating evidence to support her claims. There are none today. She made allegations, was questioned and found not creditable. Get off Joes back.
7
@J “They found zero collaborating evidence to support her claims.”
Yup. Zero “collaborating” evidence. Plenty of *corroborating* evidence, however, offered by the three women who came forward voluntarily and whose testimony Biden declined to hear.
3
You do not remember history correctly..there was supporting evidence and other women who would testify to the same . Joe killed it as he presided over the committee.
You should care that justice was not delivered to her...
2
@J
She made a fortune off it with book sales.
It’s pretty simple to me. If you are unsatisfied with the current president and you would like to see order restored, Biden is the guy. The world is changing, it would be nice to have a leader with experience, intellect and decency representing us on the international stage. He is respected, tested and revered. I don’t care that he’s in his late 70s, he understands that we need to move forward and he will lead us there.
9
@Claudia Garcia I want something better than 'order restored' for myself and my daughter. And we need much more than 'order restored' if we'd like to have a livable planet with an economic system that works for all. Not only do I think Biden is, and has always been awful, he's always been do-nothing awful - and it is way to easy to conflate him with Republicans, even if not Trump. He won't motivate turnout among the Dems who sit out, the new young Dems. Those are who we need to get to the polls. Those are the people that made the difference, along with all the (mostly older women and gay men, tbh) grassroots volunteers in turning - just narrowly - my swing Congressional District Blue.
2
This man has had too many doubts about running for office, he could have defeated Trump if he chose to run last time, he should personally phoned Anita Hill and apologized for how he led the committee, and if he is elected he will be too old to serve. And that says nothing about his past plagiarism. We need someone young as our president, someone like Kennedy who will set a new direction for our country, put out fresh ideas, and leave the Republicans and their reactionary views behind us.
1
It would be nice if those criticizing Biden's chairmanship of the Judge Thomas hearings would specifically cite what he did wrong (it's all available on video). Most comments here are terribly ill-informed about what happened -- likely before the writers' births. Yes, the hearings were terrible and Prof. Hill was poorly treated by some of the committee. But, Biden himself -- as far as I can recall and from anything I can read -- never did anything wrong.
The hearings were thrown together over 2-days with fraught political constraints and a mandate to be even-handed. What exactly could he have done, within the legal constraints of the hearing, to better shield Prof. Hill from some of the questioning? I actually think Biden did a pretty decent job under the circumstances. You can easily find video online.
4
@Eric Salathé Its what he as Chairman let happen and didn't allow to happen (other accusers testify). It was truly awful.
2
There are too many qualified Democratic candidates for liberals to claim that criticizing Biden is giving Trump 4 more years.
Biden wasn't a hand tied victim in 1991. He was a middle aged lawyer trained, as a lawyer and committee chair, to control the tone of proceedings.
I don't want to hand more power to someone who when he was the most powerful judiciary committee member claimed that he had no more authority than a legislative aide after being criticized for the committee's disgusting display.
He readily admits that he made a deal with Republicans to give Thomas as speedy hearing and appointment during his workout in the Congressional gym.
And readily forgot to offer a simple apology for 30 years.
His comment section defense attorneys and PR firm know that.
10
Judging from the media blitz excitedly reporting the final decision to run, one would think Biden had always been a faithful and true Democrat. But many of the comments in today's NYT show that belief is not held by NYT readers. They think we forget. Women have not forgotten. I see many better qualified and courageous candidates than Biden. Warren isn't cosy with Wall Street. Booker was a great mayor who really truly cares for the middle class. Harris is way smarter. and unafraid of a fight. The fact it took Biden months to decide is a real negative. We need a candidate who can quickly and correctly assess new situations and act on principle, not politics. Biden is not that person. I have not yet decided, but I like Booker's passion, Harris's whipsmart attitude, and Warren's serious and thoughtful and principled approach to fight for government that works for all. I also like Inslee who gets almost no press in spite of his exemplary record as Governor and who has courageously put climate change into this campaign. Thank God somebody did. We are at a crossroads. We cannot afford to keep ignoring the huge costs of doing nothing. NYT, please stop pushing the 'right' choice at us. Let the primaries decide.
3
Those are my favorite candidates right now too. But I'm open to learn more about some of the ones I don't know as much about. Maybe there's a diamond in the rough out there.
2
I'll only vote for Biden if he is the Democratic candidate. He should've apologized to Ms. Hill years ago. Why did he wait until an apology only served his interest? Why didn't he call others to corroborate Ms. Hill's testimony? Why did he allow Ms. Hill's personal history to become part of the hearing when it was C. Thomas and his reputation that was under investigation? Man, white men make me weary.
8
There are too many qualified democratic candidates for dem voters to pull this Biden or Trump nonsense.
Biden wasn't a hand tied victim in 1991. He was a middle aged lawyer trained, as a lawyer and committee chair, to control the tone of proceedings.
I don't want to hand more power to someone who when he was the most powerful judiciary committee member claimed that he had no more authority than a legislative aide after being criticized for the committee's disgusting display.
He readily admits that he made a deal with Republicans to give Thomas as speedy hearing and appointment during his workout in the Congressional gym.
And readily forgot to offer a simple apology for 30 years.
His comment section defense attorneys and PR firm know that.
4
Most people who have known Joe Biden and commented about him have expressed respect, admiration and genuine affection. But he has several weaknesses that make him a poor candidate for president and those limitations have been on full display recently. His inability to give a straight answer to softball questions on "The View" is a salient example, especially when he hemmed and hawed about what he meant when he said the election is a battle for the soul of America. His shilly-shallying showed that he is both unprepared for the race and unable to think quickly on his feet. Both are fatal flaws in a presidential campaign. His decision to make the Charlottesville tragedy so prominent in his announcement shows poor political judgment and a lack of keen insight because it gives Trump an easy escape and an opportunity to pander to Southern voters who believe that it was unfair to paint everyone who wanted to keep the Lee statue as reprehensible. The connotation of Trump's statement that there were very good people on both sides is misleading, connoting a false equivalence and an abject failure to fulfill his leadership responsibility to condemn the racist, despicable actions and historically reprehensible symbols of the Neo-Nazis and KKK members who co-opted the protest against removing Lee's statue. The fact that some protestors who admired Lee also found the Neo-Nazis and KKK members and their symbols repugnant shows that the literal denotation of Trump's comment was true.
3
Okay, he is officially a 'NO' for me then.
2
Biden is hopelessly clueless. His non-apology to Ms. Hill was utterly insulting. If that was what he had to say, he should not have called her at all.
He is way too old and too clueless to be our next Prez.
4
@Caroline P. not a chipper and clever young thing like the trumpling.
Folks relax Biden is a gaffe machine.
I doubt he will make past summer and I am sure he will never get past South Carolina.
Kamilla Harris is the ticket for the Democrats. Joe is just Hillary in a man's suit. Biden is who Trump wants to run against.
2
@GladF7
She's unelectable in the Midwest states we lost and need.
2
It’s hard to believe that Biden or any of his inner circle couldn’t see how this would look in the eyes of the general populace. It’s NO apology to say I’m sorry you took it the wrong way. In fact why say anything at all if your intension is to not genuinely repent for denying her justice.
It shows just how out of step he is with the direction the country is heading. As far as I’m concerned he tried to put lipstick on a pig and he is the one looking like a “pig”.
3
He stops with paternalism.
This article is irresponsibly adding to the confusion. The actual perpetrator, Clarence Thomas, is sitting on the supreme court. Before going after Mr. Biden, let's go after the three men who should not be in high office: Thomas who faces serious accusations of sexual harassment, Kavanaugh who faces serious accusations of rape, and Trump who has admitted to sexually assaulting women.
6
@Fred V I hope that by "go after" you don't mean punish without a proper hearing.
It is patently clear that Biden's phone call apology was perfunctory and, nearly 30 years and #MeToo later, offered only because he was about to announce his candidacy.
On any other day, Biden is not only perfectly comfortable not apologizing, he sees nothing wrong with his part in her mistreatment when he chaired the committee that vetted the Thomas nomination.
If this were the only problem with Biden, many women might have held up their noses and stifled their gag reflex. But it isn't the only problem with Biden. Pick an issue and the man is on the corporate side of it. At this point in time, Biden is as poor a choice of candidates as they come.
---
Things Trump Did While You Weren’t Looking [2019]
https://wp.me/p2KJ3H-3h2
6
He could have called her to apologize when the MeToo movement started, or when the Kavanaugh hearings were happening. The fact that he called her upon announcing his presidential bid is extremely telling.
We can do better.
30
I seriously do not care about 1991.
I care about now.
Joe Biden is the only one running at the moment who is a) experience and b) not an ideologue. He has my vote in the primary.
12
@A F - Did you make those same statements during the Kavanaugh hearings?
2
Not apologising now is now. And later he will be even more elderly.
2
@A F Me too. Even if I don't get a back massage.
It’s gotten to the point that apologies are akin to diplomatic statements where any deviations can cause an international crisis.
2
@MOK78 I believed Bill Clinton when he said he didn't inhale.
Alright, he said he regretted the way he handled it, enough of the apology stuff, it's time to move on.
There are other people in public office that have done far worse and have never apologized, starting with Clarence Thomas and ending with Donald Trump.
14
Joe Biden did pretty well on "The View," about as well as you could expect. He's, of course, held to a higher standard than President Trump is with his "personal space" issues. (Did Angela Merkel's shoulder rub from George W. Bush really happen?) And there was an almost shocking contrast segueing into "Rachael Ray" where the organizer extraordinaire, Peter Walsh couldn't keep his hands off Rachael. I'm not a touchy-feely sort myself, but...
2
I have not watch The View in awhile because it has turned into a sort of daytime reality show complete with a “mean girl”. I wanted to watch Joe Biden so I held my nose and watched. What a massive waste of time. No questions on policies and solutions just forced apologies and missed opportunities.
It was uncomfortable watching the hosts trying to get Biden to say the words they wanted him to say and his reluctance to do so. He said what he said he made mistakes and he has owned them. Why keep harping on it? The Apology Tours will not get him elected. I know he has the experience but I wanted to hear his ideas not mea culpas. Meanwhile Trump is getting staunch support no matter how whacky his behavior or how many outrageous outright lies he tells.
11
@Deborah Robinson
Here's one idea he will be asked about:
"Elizabeth Warren is calling out Joe Biden for his 2005 vote on a measure that critics say enabled credit card companies to target people seeking bankruptcy protection: "Joe Biden was on the side of the credit card companies.""
https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/440875-warren-takes-shot-at-biden-he-was-on-the-side-of-credit-card-companies
3
@Deborah Robinson He didn't speak on ideas because he doesn't have any. a person with new ideas doesn't wait to be asked. Warren has bravely put forward several novel plans, which may be imperfect, but perfectable. Most politicians talk vaguely about ideas, but are too scared to seriously educate themselves and come up with a plan. Warren, and Cory Booker, and Jay Inslee demonstrate serious thinking and courage. Inslee has excellent experience too. We need not settle for the same old same old. Time for new thinking.
5
@Rima Regas and therefore ?
A funny thing about apologies: your friends don't need them, and your enemies will never accept them.
8
@Sam Daniels - I disagree. If you want friends, you apologize and find a way to atone for the offense. If you continue to transgress, you might turn a friend into an enemy.
3
@tom harrison
and a sincere, heartfelt apology combined with appropriate atonement might just turn an enemy into a friend . . .
3
@tom harrison And if he's done nothing worse than tom harrison might do, who apologizes...
tom or joe?
Biden did his job as a lawyer all those years ago and any lawyer would have done the same. He had no other choice. This whole conversation of asking Biden to apologize for either being too touchy or too effective at his job is beneath the dignity of all. Time for #metoo to get serious about bringing about healing from the past instead of this pathetic and self righteous blaming of past actions for continued suffering
4
Yes he did, he said ‘I am sorry this is a torn on my election campaign’.
But he won’t say sorry to her, because Democrats do not believe women.
The picture of him slowly approaching Angela Merkel to kiss her, and Mrs Merkel jumping is priceless.
This is the best the Democrats have? Guess so.
4
@AutumnLeaf you just might be changing colors by NEXT autumn.
Biden is a Republican in practice, a Democrat only in name. On every economic issue in the last 30 years - he has voted with Republicans. From Glass-Steagal to the Iraq War he voted for the bankers, the military-industrial complex and the rich.
38
@DSD. True and all good for every American. It’s not not a negative.
1
@DSD and THAT's why you want him to apologize to Anita Hill?
As a Democrat who had the flu during the hearings, I had the opportunity to watch almost every moment of the televised hearings. The fact that then-Senator Biden voted against Thomas speaks to his belief in the strength of Ms. Hill's testimony.
A fact that hurt her testimony was that she failed to file with the EEOC or other appropriate agency after her first encounter. By 1991, there were legal avenues open to Ms. Hill to lodge a complaint. Despite her encounter (s) with Thomas, she moved with him when he went to a new position. Most of the professional women that I worked with all agreed that her acceptance of that career move with him appeared contradictory. In equity, it is known as sitting on your hands.
Consider that the stakes were so high that Senator Biden, like many judges, had to question Ms. Hill aggressively. It is not uncommon. If she was not prepared for such, then the persons that supported her did not do their job preparing her for her testimony. Real world. There was no kid glove treatment then or now. She went up against the Bush machine. They wheeled out Senator Danforth, a former senator, and clergyman. It was the old boy network, and the Hill strategy was flawed. A good lesson is to be prepared. There have been enough apologies. Let's look to the future.
17
@Kathryn
Kathryn really makes some excellent points in my view.
4
The man clearly has an apology problem. He gave this interview a day after this publication said Anita Hill said he didn't apologize when he called her. Seems like some pretty low-hanging fruit to get it right the next day. I guess he doesn't think he didn't think anything wrong.
I remember Anita Hill's testimony like it was yesterday. I remember knowing several other women were waiting to be called to corroborate what she was saying. I remember a bunch of men saying it was Clarence Thomas' business if he happened to like pornography and that his privacy was being violated and how do we know what really happened. I remember Clarence Thomas, inexplicably, saying he was being targeted because of his race, which didn't make any sense considering Anita Hill's race.
And most of all I remember thinking "how can this be happening in 1991?" hearings like they were yesterday. Doesn't seem like much has changed sometimes. And here's your evidence.
8
@M I might agree with you if you had actually presented some evidence when you said "here's your evidence."
Biden's failure to actually apologize to Anita Hill for the way she was treated in your committee tells me a lot about Mr. Biden's seriousness about improving the situations of women.
How hard is it to actually apologize? Why call her on the phone without apologizing? I find Biden's position disturbing.
15
@Pajaritomt - Why not apologize in person, maybe bring some flowers or make a donation to her favorite charity in her name?
People can tell when you truly are sorry about something and when you say you are sorry because you just announced your bid to the presidency.
He should have gone to her a year ago seeking her blessing before announcing his candidacy and making her relive those moments as the press starts screaming, Anita, Anita, Anita.
2
The Clarence Thomas debacle is not Biden's only stumbling block. He has always been on the side of the credit card companies and big banks (many of them have home offices in Delaware). It has not been on the side of the average consumer. Also, he is responsible for the school to prison pipeline with his get tough sentencing and jail terms.
I am very concerned about Biden's history of conservative stances defending big corporations and pro-carceration.
21
Unfortunately Joe was playing to the crowd in 1991 and he still is.
8
@John Not like other politicians
This is how the Democrats will lose in 2020. It’s both tragic and entirely predictable, when the gatekeepers and decision-makers don’t reflect their base.
15
I thought Biden’s appearance on The View was an unmitigated disaster. He fumbled and mumbled through every question. Sorry to write this because he’s a good guy on some levels but he sounds old, looks old and acts old. His answer to how specifically he would win back rust belt blue collar voters: “well, we have to restore the dignity of work”. God help us if he gets the nomination.
208
@AJBF Same here. No energy nor excitement for the first interview after the announcement.
I don't like the way politicians use the word "Look" to start the sentence, which Mr. Biden used too often during the interview. They became almost annoying.
Maybe he wasn't ready for this interview.
22
@AJBF
From another point of view, it was a success. He thoughtfully responded to every question. Sometimes people seem to fumble and mumble when they do this. This double standard ageism that's becoming endemic to our political discussion--very troubling. Considering how well our society treats the elderly, however, it's little surprise.
17
@AJBF
Yep, I'm with you. I hope the advent of Biden doesn't send the Times down the same road they took in 2016. They did everything possible to help nominate HRC. They ignored Sanders and said not a word about how disrespectful the DNC were and how they mitigated the outcome in Hillary's favor. Biden bores me, he's too old. Bernie is old but he has the heart and the energy of youth behind him, he has ideas, hes' willing to show up and he's willing to learn and change. I see none of that in Biden.
29
Joe Biden should apologize to Anita Hill.
Then he should promise her a nomination to the Supreme Court should he be elected president. (It would be great if he could replace Clarence Thomas with Ms. Hill. That would be justice.)
12
Good for you, Joe. Hang in there and don't give in to the demented howls from the more extreme fringes of your party. You have assumed both the opportunity and responsibility for saving both party and country.
6
Leave Biden be. He's not a perfect human being, but who is? He was good enough to be a fine VP and he will be a fine president.
4
@John Jabo I'm perfect ........ There, I said it :)
@skanda cute. now back to the story.....
This is merely a single example of Mr. Biden's profoundly poor judgment. This human flaw is enough to disqualify him as a candidate.
How many lives have been negatively effected by Uncle Joe's poor judgments?
How many lives have been negatively impacted by Clarence Thomas' ascension to the Supreme Court?
Why were the other women not brought before the committee?
Why did he not apologize to Ms. Hill until weeks before announcing his candidacy?
How many lives were destroyed by his support for illegal war of aggression in Iraq?
How many lives were shattered by the Crime Bill?
Sorry just isn't enough.
Just Say No to Joe!!
9
If voters expect politically correctness and perfection from Democrat candidates, and only from Democrats, Democrats never win.
5
@uji10jo But they're great at writing books
The Anita Hill testimony to the Senate Judiciary Committee in 1991 is not just a singular event - it took place within the context of a country where women are still told they must be wary about protecting themselves from sexual violence or harassment. (Go to www.rainn.org for some stats from federal data bases.)
Here's a thought experiment: how many men change their behavior at least once a week because of fear of sexual assault or harassment; e.g., get someone to walk you to your car, make sure your best friend knows about your date - where you are going, when you will be home, don't be alone with your grabby co-worker, walk with your keys in your hand, etc.
Now, ask those men what their number one fear is if they somehow end up in prison.
Ask women if they change their behavior at least once a week because of fear of sexual assault. Ask women how many times they have been dismissed, passed over for promotion, earned less money than the guy they trained, etc.
Joe Biden, like the vast majority of decent men, is not responsible for this state of our nation, but he does not appear to want to try and imagine walking through the world as a black woman.
In the tumult concerning this moment in time (Clarence Thomas confirmation), I think it is possible people are reacting so strongly because of the context of the nation we live in now - a nation where a man caught on tape about grabbing women's genitals could still be made president decades later.
3
As an outsider looking in not able to vote and with no preference as to the outcome especially at this time: I thought it was the job of those committees to not hold back because it was important for both Anita Hill, herself as an individual, and the potential appointment of a supreme court justice that the truth get out.
For doing his job he has nothing to apologize for and he certainly shouldn't apologize for the other committee members who did cross the line. His apology is accurate in that he is sorry Anita Hill had to go through with that treatment. Anything less however would have been a disservice to the exposing of the truth the committee and Anita Hill were after. Truth versus politeness at the expense of truth are two different matters. So far, Joe Biden has done very well under fire and is the best candidate with Elizabeth Warren and Mayor Mike Buttigieg, both with their own questionable actions, as extremely good candidates. Joe Biden is the best chance for democrats to retake both the House of Representatives and the Senate. Consideration: Joe Biden with Elizabeth Warren or Mike Buttigieg as VP on the ticket and it wouldn't be long for the US to regain the world wide respect it has lost over the past few years. Keep in mind this is the opinion of a non-citizen, non-voting outsider so maybe, just maybe, it can be more objective than you might otherwise consider. If he wants it Barrack Obama for consideration as United States UN representative.
4
Frankly, I see Biden as one of the only real candidates that can defeat Trump. Then again, with the idealism sought by far too many liberals, I doubt there is ANY candidate the Dems could put forth that would defeat Trump. Forget Pete, Beto, Booker, Warren, Bernie and the other 20 or so "egotists". Ok, Kamala stands a chance, but she's got to stop buying every Democratic issue someone else is pushing. That "Walmart-like" approach tells me she too is a "crowd pleaser". Unfortunately, that won't crush Trump. That strategy is precisely what the GOP wants to see. Dems nominate a fresh Utopian candidate with a "looters' position on economic issues that matter most.
I see myself as liberal on many issues, and I've paid my dues growing up poor in the inner city 80's. Matter a fact I marvel I'm still alive. Guess that was ions ago, when liberals were both culturally open minded and mentally tough. Yeah, we hoped for utopia, but if we didn't get close to it, that's ok. We are liberals - part of the pleasure was the pain. No need to demand all 16 million possible colors when most folks only used the basic 16. Today's liberal voter has taken Utopia past Utopia to some blackhole where (sadly) all these democratic candidates are too eager to go. The mere fact that Biden won't go there (perhaps b/c he's too old) is reason alone I will vote for him.
No Utopiaville for me... I know for a fact I am NOT alone. I am for an intelligent, realist, who's open-minded and a little imperfect.
6
Let's see...
It took him two months to either decide to run, or reveal that he had made the decision to run. Either way, too clever by half.
He can't lower himself enough to apologize, sincerely, for the way HE behaved...instead, he says he tried and was sad the way she was treated (passive voice)
Hugging and kissing and saying he didn't mean to make anyone upset? He just doesn't understand.
The plagiarism thing...
The vote for the Iraq war
The nickname "Senator MasterCard"
Two pathetic, weak attempts at getting the nomination. Not even close
Hair plugs
Spending tons of taxpayer money taking weekend trips home from DC to Delaware
So many gaffes!
If by some twist of fate he was nominated and won the presidency in 2020, he's be 78 years old when he was sworn in.
Don't get me wrong...if the Democrats nominated Satan vs. Trump, I'd vote for Satan, but they can do better than that. And better than Joe Biden. Even HRC has the sense to stay out of it after being beaten by Obama and Trump.
Of the 20 Democratic candidates, I can't think of one who wouldn't have a better chance of winning.
24
@Nat Ehrlich
I wish I could recommend this 100 times. Joe Biden is dead in the water - Trump is going to look energetic and focused compared to Biden. The two month lead up was just too precious - it wasn’t worth waiting for.
" Biden Declines to Directly Apologize " Meanwhile, back in the nobility of the Oval Office....
5
@kenneth
Trump doesn’t pretend to be something he isn’t. You may not like him but he’s authentic in his own way. Unlike Biden who can’t even seem to understand that the base he is trying to play to no longer exists.
3
@Me "I'm like a genius … and a very stable genius at that!”
Ah, yes, very authentic... "in his own way."
I have a fantasy, that all these old white men would get behind another candidate, that they would use their influence in this way rather than competing with the diverse field of candidates. Yeah, like a said - fantasy.
10
Haven't we heard enough about Biden? Stop Proping him up with near constant coverage that says little different from yesterday's article about his failure to make things right with Professor Hill.
12
@AC
99% of the people in the US don't know who Anita Hill is. And even more don't care.
The guy who should apologize has been sitting on the supreme court bench for decades.
1
@AIM - Next you will claim that 99% of the US. does not know who Monica or Stormy are either.
@tom harrison Nonsense. Stormy Wellington is one of the top network marketers in the country. Everybody knows that.
A Biden/Hill ticket? Unity to rid us of our current scourge. That's thinking outside the Beltway.
2
@Peter Stix - I think Hill/Biden has a better ring to it.
@tom harrison
brass ring ?
Speaking as a woman: of all the men who have apologized for their behavior in the wake of #MeToo, I have yet to see a single one that was considered to have passed muster. Of course, some things are beyond apology, like Weinstein. But I am really tired of this myth that if only the person had crafted the perfect apology, with just the right amount of humility, regret, and acknowledgement, while coming off as 100% sincere, then we’d be ready to move on. There is clearly no such apology.
Small wonder that politicians have taken note that the only ones who have managed to move past scandals are those that emphatically do not apologize. See Trump, Kavanaugh and Northam. Refusing to take any responsibility at all doesn’t guarantee you’ll survive, but it gives you some chance, whereas attempting to appease your critics gives you zero.
I’m not particularly excited about Biden, and I was absolutely outraged about how Ford’s allegations were handled, but times HAVE changed. Or at least, the Democrats have.
3
@Mercury S I have yet to see a single one that was considered to have passed muster. CONSIDERED BY WHOM ?
Yes, Joe, you did treat Anita Hill badly. You mocked her and made a huge show (almost a pantomime) of your incredulity toward her testimony. You belittled her. And what in the world did she have to gain by coming forward? Only what she got - a public shaming and the pain of having to live with scorn heaped on her for the rest of her days for having done the right thing. I detest Donald Trump. Wild horses could no drag me to the polls to cast a vote for him. But I won't be voting for you either. At least Trump is up front about his low regard for women.
28
The narrow & selective litmus tests that the Left seeks to apply to everything they come across is short-sighted & tiresome...
..If they wish to hold themselves up as the self-righteous judges of others (as seems to be the case), you can be sure the American electorate will send them packing..
... Being lectured at by the sanctimonious & holier-than-thou, has never been well-received by Americans..
5
@mike
A "narrow and selective" litmus test? No, the requirement that one like a civilized, respectful human being to the entire population, which is 51% female. And, please, possess the intellect of more than a room temperature mushroom.
On both fronts, Joe Biden fails. He has lied and manipulated and glad handed his sleazy used car salesman self through a career in Congress for 40+ years. Mercifully, he is off the taxpayer dole and needs to remain there.
7
@Maggie
.. sounds pretty judgmental ..
And this is what women have a problem with... accountability. If you don't even see it, how can you change it? Empty apologies as Anita Hill called it, yet again
21
Will GOP and Kavanaugh apologize to Catherine Blasey Ford?
4
@proffexpert - Ford said something happened but she couldn't remember where. Kavanaugh said it didn't happen.
Biden and Hill were broadcast on television and we can all go back and watch every single word of it. Completely different scenarios.
1
@tom harrison. Please check your facts. Ford wasnt allowed to present witnesses. Just like Hill. Nor did GOP allow Kavanaugh to be fully interrogated by the outside expert that the GOP themselves brought in.
@tom harrison But, remember, you did believe Monica .
All belt, no trousers. Nope, another swing and a miss, Joe.
8
Joe Biden personally blocked witnesses who had suffered similar harassment from Clarence Thomas — who had traveled to Washington to testify, who were in the building ready to testify — from testifying.
Good day, sir.
Anyone who supports Biden and calls themselves a Democrat is a fraud.
35
@Hmmm
Sorry Hmmm, but calling those of us who don’t pass your litmus test for Democrats a “fraud” is the equivalent of yelling “get off my lawn!” and quite laughable. It’s a big tent party.
History has proven what I and many others believed at the time: Clarence Thomas was and is unqualified for the Supreme Court. I felt that way before I ever heard of Anita Hill and obviously nothing in that sorry spectacle improved my view of him. That being said I had questions then and now about Professor Hill's claim. Remember she gave up a protected civil service job to follow Thomas from the Department of Education to a non civil service job at the EEOC. If Thomas's conduct was unacceptable that job change makes no sense. The late eighties was a hot job market for young lawyers and there were many opportunities available especially for a female Afro-American ivy league graduate.
Was the questioning of her fair and impartial? I don't know it probably wasn't. Was the skepticism about her story justified? I am afraid it was. At the very least more was going on there than was ever revealed by either Thomas or Hill. I believe that both of them were, if not lying, not telling the whole truth.
As for Biden's conduct of the hearings, there is not much a chairman can do to stop a colleagues line of questions.
3
@Robert M. Stanton - It makes no sense to me that a woman would stay with a husband who beats her yet they do. That in no way changes the fact that her husband is abusive.
1
@tom harrison Are you saying Joe Biden beats his wife? Or were you just referencing another story?
People need to remember the old adage: “You can’t change the past to fit the present.”
It would’ve been great if we were all woke in the 1990s and before. But we weren’t. So let it go already, or we’ll be questioning why Jesus didn’t behave exactly as we’d want him to in the 21st Century.
3
There was a time he might have been a good presidential candidate, but it is now gone. To vote for him would be a mistake.
4
@Donniebrook
No one thought he was a good candidate the last 3 times he ran.
20
@Maggie I understand you pov, but remember, you can't get on a ballot unless an awful lot of people think you might be a good candidate.
Joe Biden had over 25 years to reflect on "what happened" at committee hearings of which he was chair, and could have allowed corroborating witnesses, and disallowed slander and insult that put Anita Hill on trail, and incinerated her reputation. That it took him over 25 years, and only on the eve of announcing his candidacy, to address this atrocious behavior defines an "apology" that is anything but; it's a sleazy effort at political spin. And it's not just about Anita Hill; it's an attitude about women, about black women more particularly, about what women should be good sports about in the workplace, about whether women's reports are credible. Apoligizing to Anita Hill is important. Just as important is a statement of shame and an apology to the American people, men and women, sons and daughters. And please, don't tell me that our choice is either Biden or Trump. It is not.
9
Prof. Hill was a credible and moving witness at that hearing 30 years ago, but this smells like proxy outrage. G.H.W. Bush foisted Thomas on the country, not Biden, but Bush is dead and Thomas is safe in his lifetime appointment, so let's find someone else to blame. I remember 1991: it was a different world. Judging Biden by today's standards isn't right.
2
@Blair
It is still today, genius. We're not talking a century ago. Just about everyone who was a Silent Generation, Boomer, Millennial viewing those hearings then is still alive and remembers this watershed moment. Women and girls get it, as do finally some men.
Most people recall it with revulsion and deep concern for the dignified, admirable Prof. Anita Hill. Most people also recall the repulsive Clarence Thomas and the revolting Joe Biden, as well as the rest of those men sitting there, dismissing her testimony and dismissing her as a human being. They all ganged up on and made a sexual spectacle of Prof. Hill for their own weak, prurient enjoyment.
14
@Maggie I'm sorry, Maggie, but Blair has a point. That's why people today don't scorn George Washington or Thomas Jefferson for having had slaves.
What in the world is wrong in this country where its politicians shun making public apologies?
To me, someone who makes a genuine apology after they've harmed someone earns a chance at redemption, and will likely be respected by myself and millions of others far more than those who don't apologize.
President George H.W. Bush needed to apologize to Ms. Hill and America, for reasons heretofore made clearer than water in an alpine lake. He never did. I believe Anita Hill to this day, and still want to hear from the others denied a chance to appear before the committee. Clarence Thomas is the never ending disaster for the common American.
10
Granted Mr. Biden could have been more helpful during Ms. Hill’s senate hearings, but he was just one man on the panel.
Why do the Dems always have to take the moral high ground? Why didn’t any of the other panelists like the ‘self-professed patriots’ (Republicans) think to help Ms. Hill?
As bad as Judge Thomas’s alleged sexual harassment may have been, it pales in comparison to the ‘horrible ordeal’ that Dr. Blasey Ford suffered at the hands of one Judge Kavanaugh, nothing short of sexual assault, for that matter.
The two are not the same, not by a long shot. Where’s the moral outrage for his confirmation?
Don’t hear anyone asking Kavanaugh to resign or step aide from the SC bench.
Or will we continue to give the Republicans a pass because they ‘failed’ at their disgusting attempt to rob someone’s dignity or that of the nation (in the case of the 45th)?
For how long will we keep making the Dems ‘carry water’ for the Republic?
If the Reps. are not equal partners in this fight, perhaps they should just change the name of the party: Russian Party of America.
Nothing wrong with that. Ironically, the same Constitution that they violate 24/7 gives them the freedom to do just that.
How sad is the state of the Republic?!
3
He was definitely not just one man on the panel. He was in charge of the panel, and made the decisions that erased Prof Hill’s dignity and truth.
6
Thank you for your service Joe, but it's time that you pass the baton to a new generation of leaders who truly get women's issues. You can learn a few things from them.
7
He should NOT apologize for anything, otherwise he will spend rest of this campaign apologizing, while the liar, cheater in-chief Trump will be re-elected.
Asking for apologies is just another version of Hillary's email server.
4
I didn't pay much attention to the "touching" stuff about Mr. Biden. But as an Independent voter who is disgusted by Mr. Trump, I don't think Mr. Biden is a good choice for Democrats. He comes across as an old line, big smile politician who craves attention, and makes too many goofy comments in that quest. And as this and numerous other articles have pointed out, he has a lot of baggage from past decades. Now, with incidents like collecting $200,000 to address a Republican-leaning audience last November, he reminds me of Ms. Clinton's exorbitant "speaking fees" from Wall Street firms and major campaign contributions from Mr. Rich's wife. How about a serious, thoughtful, ethical candidate interested in representing all Americans? And BTW: "President Trump lobbed taunts [about Mr. Biden's treatment of the women] ... " (NYTimes, 6Apr2019) Yet another bid by Mr. Trump to be the poster boy for chutzpah.
4
A few points, as we revise a controversial event from a time when "Smells Like Teen Spirit" ruled the airwaves.
Point 1: Joe Biden is one of the reasons Anita Hill was called to testify in the first place. Asking questions about how she felt was meant to generate sympathy/empathy. This worked. Biden was an Anita supporter when this was far from the popular opinion. Sorry, that was three points.
Point 2: Biden has apologized to the degree he feels honestly responsible. Who would do more than this, and remain true to oneself?
Point 3: Articles like this one feed into a narrative that the media has the responsibility to call politicians to repentance, but only if the editorial departments can define the sins. Not healthy.
Point 4. Here we are now, imitators.
7
@Sam Daniels
Biden's leadership in the the Clarence Tomas confirmation hearing allowed Republicans to trample her relentlessly. His refusal to allow the testimony of two corroborating witnesses was inexplicable then and hasn't been explained since.
"To thine own self be true?" Really? This was a fatuous remark when Polonius said it and isn't less so now.
6
@PeterLaw
I'm impressed that he has apologized to the degree that he feels responsible--and also that he has not apologized to the extent demanded by a small Democratic Roman mob.
A funny thing about apologies: your friends don't need them, and your enemies will never accept them.
1
@Sam Daniels
I am not an enemy of Joe Biden but he does continue to disappoint me with his tone deaf remarks and this particular non apology apology to Anita Hill.
So glad to hear that so many consider Joe Biden the preferred candidate for 2020. Why? Because he is better than Trump (a truly low bar), because he is familiar, he is likable, most electable, experienced (given) the safest choice? Really?
How about accountability?
4
US presidential elections in most cases are choice between lesser evils, and do have consequences. In the 2-party system [a VERY POOR form of ‘democracy’] if the people on one side hold their candidate to a much higher standard than the other, the OTHER will win. tRump!!
2
I am sick and tired of hearing about things that happened 30 years ago, 40 years ago. It's literally a lifetime ago. We will begin to start to get things done in this country when we forget the past and concentrate on the future.
6
I blame Anita Hill for mishandling her issue. If she was treated so badly by Clarence Thomas then she should have reported it to the proper authorities after it happened.
But, she waited almost a decade to say something. Interestingly, she only spoke up when Clarence Thomas was being nominated for the bench.
Why didn't she report his behavior before? Maybe to the media or Thomas' superiors or governing body? Heck, she worked for EEOC which makes her motives suspicious.
Anita had choices which included the proper way of dealing with the transgression without being dragged through the mud in the public eye.
Instead she opted for handling it Jerry Springer style by jumping into mainstream politics during Thomas' confirmation hearing.
Yes, Joe Biden did not make her personal matter a circus spectacle. Anita did. Joe could have handled the hearings better but Anita could have handled her personal matter much more discreetly, maturely, and intelligently.
I have ZERO sympathy for Anita Hill at this point.
2
@mrpisces
You do realize that back then, there were often no 'proper authorities' to report to, and if you did speak up chances were you would lose your job, without recourse.
5
@mrpisces - Back then there wasn't any type of procedure for handling harassment. I was just entering the work force and we were pretty much forced to muddle along as well as we could.
What did bother me then and now is that call logs showed Hill calling Thomas long after she'd worked with him. If he was so terrible why did she voluntarily keep in touch with him?
Joe, just, no.
I tried to let you off the hook easy, by saying that your age was a way out. But you force me to be more blunt, though I hope, still polite.
You won’t win the primary, because there are several other candidates that have a better track record than you. They are more convincing to more people that they can lead us into the future, and they can all beat Trump.
So your argument that you can beat Trump is no way good enough. Yes, you can pull the establishment money strings. But the fact that you haven’t noticed the new way, to raise money in small donations, says it all about how out of touch you are.
Plus, it is our turn. I strongly believe one of the female candidates can do a better job than you of running a campaign, and our executive branch.
So, Joe, if you really want to save our country, please pick a woman and back her with all your might, rather than running yourself.
3
@Terro O’Brien
You make this comment: "here are several other candidates that have a better track record than you [Biden]."
That is simply not true. Who do you have in mind? And what is your evidence?
Just consider foreign policy: several candidates have served in the military, a several have studied abroad, and Mayor Pete speaks six languages. Those are not the same as chairing the Foreign Relations committee and knowing the inside of the details of foreign policy as he has over the past eight years. He got a lot of things wrong, including his support for the blunder in Iraq, but so did Hillary.
Ideas are not the same as experience. A lot of the candidates have some very interesting new ideas, some have some very old interesting ideas that have not made it to first base.
I'm not sure about Joe. But the idea floated a month or so ago got my attention. Run for one term, pick a candidate, a woman like Stacey Abrams, have her focus on domestic policy while Biden focuses on repairing our foreign relations.
That I could buy into.
3
Good. Finally an apology he won’t make. I was wondering if that would ever happen. It’s debatable whether Biden did anything wrong in the first place, but even if he did, who really cares if some mean men were a little dismissive to Anita Hill in a hearing that occurred back in 1992? I’m pretty sure there’s plenty to get outraged about that happened in the last 24 hours that we don’t need to dip into the 92 vault for more material.
A word of advice to Biden: stop apologizing. You’ve been a decent guy your whole life (with some occasional mistakes like all people), and yet it will never be enough for some people. I say stand up for what you believe in, and let the haters take their best shot at you.
5
Never mind apologies - what policies would Biden promote to prevent this sort of problem in the future? What would Biden do to promote the equality of women and men, to prevent and punish sexual harassment, to address the structural sexism in our laws and institutions?
Anita Hill was hurt in the Clarence Thomas hearings, and deserves not only an apology but also some compensation. And it's not only Anita Hill. All women were harmed by that display of male disregard for women's concerns. So all women deserve to have our issues heard, taken seriously, and addressed in policy. If Biden does that, I'll take him seriously.
4
Please, I understand why this is a story, Biden just entered the race yesterday. But, let's not turn this into Hillary's emails. Meaning a story that the media never felt they could drop. Meanwhile, you have a man who sits in the Oval Office, who never apologizes for anything, lies on a minute by minute basis, refuses to cooperate with Congress, and generally makes his own rules as he goes along. I hear reporters ask Trump questions that are answered with falsehoods, but met with no follow up. But, hey, let's rake Biden and every other democrat over the coals till we get the answer we want. Were no lessons learned by what happened in 2016?
5
I was a Biden fan before his two recent non-apoliges. In this era of ruthless Trump actions and name calling, I’m beginning to think Biden is too rooted in trying to please everyone and be likable. Maybe we need someone as crazy as Trump. Elizabeth Warren is the most passionate.
@MEB -- But E.Warren won't have a chance as her give-away-for-free programs frighten many voters, especially (and rightfully so) the middle class who would end up paying for her frivolous handouts. The middle has been taxed to the hilt; the poor can't and the rich won't pay. And the middle class will no longer be in a position to pay for programs cooked up by politicians so they can get a vote.
2
I do not think Joe Biden should apologize to Anita Hill as he did nothing wrong. Ms. Hill made some serious charges of sexual harassment against Clarence Thomas and needed to be questioned. There was no disrespect showed toward her. Maybe Clarence Thomas is the one who needs to obtain an apology. These accusations were just that accusations. He was confirmed as a Supreme Court justice so obviously there were those who found him innocent. He has proved to be an outstanding justice and the reasons he has been condemned is he is a conservative. A liberal candidate would not have been treated in the manner Justice Thomas was. There is a double standard even today.
1
@KMW - Outstanding justice? Name one thing he's done that meets that criteria?
1
Is it really “feminist” to ask for someone’s consent before you touch them in any way? You know, a good-ol “may I hug you? May I shake your hand?” Some people are making it sound like respecting a human’s agency and body is such a reach. What a blind spot!
He kept saying “look” before he answered any questions, which sounds so entitled and definitely a Hilary 2.0.
His non-apologies to the women who felt uncomfortable around him and Anita Hill were so appalling. He has some deep misogyny to work through, which if he admitted he doesn’t actually get it, it would be so refreshing. It’s not a sign of weakness at all to not-know everything. It would show he’s still malleable to learning, for which most elders struggle.
But then people claim he’s empathetic and great at helping other grieve? It’s so weird to me. How can someone be empathetic and evade accountability for their actions? It seems like a feel-good ploy to get people not to think critically about who this man really is and what he stands for/against.
They didn’t even mention his history of being against school integration; his role in crafting the 1994 crime bill that increased our prison population and ripped many Black and brown folks from their families.
It’s a big nope for me, Uncle Joe. We need a president with integrity; someone’s willing to learn; hold themselves accountable to wrongdoing. In Joe Biden’s centrist world, someone will always suffer in his project to achieve power. That’s not okay.
4
I like Joe Biden - warts and all. He is the real deal, but is he the right guy for now? Can he beat Trump? I have my doubts. Right now, I see Elizabeth Warren as the most articulate, and toughest fighter against Trump. And she brings poetic justice in spades - a woman dumps Trump.
1
About 19 years, Biden badly mishandled the Clarence Thomas hearing and contributed to Anita Hill’s lifetime of anger and feelings of betrayal by the former VP and other Democrats on the committee. Now, after one day as a candidate for the nomination to challenge Trump for the presidency, something of a firestorm has greeted him for that failure and for making some people, mostly women, uncomfortable for invading their space in a non-sexual way.
Let’s not put his failure to stand up to Thomas or defend Ms. Hill to the sexual outrages of our current president. Need anyon be reminded of the Access Hollywood tapes, the more than a dozen women who’ve accused him of sexual assault, his dalliances with two porn stars, with one while his wife was recovering from giving birth and the pay offs to both of them weeks before the election?
Give Biden some time to right the wrongs and let’s not try to destroy the candidacy of the possible Democrat who will challenge trump for re election on the first full day of his campaign.
4
I was beginning my career as a lawyer, working in a public defender's office in which we handled both criminal defense and civil rights cases, when Anita Hill testified against Clarence Thomas. All of the attorneys, 3 of which were black, 3 of which were Latino, and over half of which were women, believed Hill, though the black attorneys were conflicted. In sharp contrast, not a single person in a support position, approximately 75 percent women, and over half black, believed Hill, in fact they hated her.
One might conclude it was more about class than race, but I'm not considered white by most people, and I grew up working class, a child of penniless immigrants, so I hardly fit the profile, and neither did most of the attorneys. Most notable was how the women of color who opposed Hill and supported Thomas were absolutely furious at Hill for not keeping her mouth shut.
It's easy to blame Biden for his very real failures, but his failures are American failures. This includes failures of all communities, including the black community, which because racism is constantly present was more concerned with protecting a powerful black man who, like Bret Kavanaugh, put the system on trial, than it was in accepting the testimony of a black woman who was telling the truth.
Biden may not deserve to be President, but it's hypocritical to pretend he was the real problem here, or that he could have solved what was, and remains, profoundly wrong with America, if he'd simply done better.
5
Obama picked Biden as his running mate and didn't think that the Hill hearings would be a disqualification - why didn't the media criticize Obama then? Why didn't the media challenge Biden for 8 years when he was in office as VP? So, Biden never thought of calling Prof. Hill for 30 years because no one - the media, especially - never asked him to.
The media is acting as through Biden was the perpetrator of the harassment. Prof. Hill voluntarily came forward to testify, and Biden was the Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. The topic was brand new and explosive, so we've to cut Biden some slack in how he handled the public scrutiny of coke cans and pubic hairs.
You can't blame Biden for not having women questioners because there were fewer women senators then and none were on the committee. Biden voted against Thomas's confirmation.
We're talking about a hearing in 1991 about inappropriate events that supposedly happened in 1981 between two adults. If this is what purity is for the Dems, God help them!
190
@Rajkamal Rao
All true. Still, a direct apology for the circus he contributed to should be a breeze.
35
@Rajkamal Rao -- It was Joe Biden, not someone else, who refused to call women as witnesses who were willing to provide possibly corroborating testimony in support of Anita Hill. And it was Joe Biden, not someone else, who arranged the schedule of testimony so that Clarence Thomas got to give his self-pitying "high tech lynching" speech to a prime-time television audience, while Hill was relegated to early afternoon when relatively few people were watching the hearings. This was no level playing field; Biden's thumb was on the scales and the nation has suffered the consequences ever since.
134
@Rajkamal Rao Sexism in all its forms has been around since the Garden of Eden. Nothing new, no excuses.
If Biden could not control Hatch and Simpson et al. in a hearing, what is he going to do at summit with Putin? Flash that smile and say "Aw shucks, we just have to do this sanctions thing, you know. Sorry, I know it's inconvenient for you -- I apologize".
23
Biden could have gone down in history as an effective Vice President and warm counterpart to President Obama. Now he's going to be remembered as a failed presidential candidate who never "got" women's issues. Time to step aside, Mr. Biden, learn from your mistakes, and make room for people who truly understand and are committed to gender equality.
Brava Anita Hill! While Biden may not have been the worst offender at the hearings, he failed to stop the cruel and misogynist onslaught. And--so far at least--he has failed to apologize to the nation for not stopping Clarence Thomas.
257
@Lisa -- oh stop it, Joe Biden is a fine candidate. Much better suited than the rest of them.
10
@Lisa. Here is the central question. Was he wrong? No. She testified and her account of thing did not line up with other account. She was not believed for a reason.
4
@Lisa
In real life, ALL women's rights organizations have called him one of their strongest heroes, based on his legislative record and record as VP, when it's comes to women's rights.
And already before he started running, he was the front-runner.
If you ask formidable candidates like that to "step aside" and "learn from your mistakes", then obviously imho - and with all respect - you're part of the problem here, rather than the solution.
As to Thomas: at the time, he was considered to be a moderate, remember?
In a democracy, we only get the government we deserve. If we can't do some basic fact-checking and give in to easy cynicism, all progress will always be extremely slowly, and threatened by corrupt politicians such as the current GOP.
Do you know that this week, the GOP block a UN resolution that would have declared rape illegal as war weapon?
THAT is what happens when "we the people" don't inform ourselves and can't focus on our goals or fail to get clear ideas about moral values.
15
In listening to the clip of that portion of the interview, two things stand out. As a followup to an earlier question that Biden answered in the passive voice, Ms. Behar asks why he doesn't say "I'm sorry about the way that *I* treated you." Biden gives a rambling answer, but toward the end says that he doesn't know how anyone can prevent someone on a panel from making inflammatory or character assassinations of the witness. Unbelievably clueless, if not dissembling. The way the chair of a meeting handles that is, at the very outset of an inflammatory character assassination, you take the microphone and say, "I will not allow that kind of treatment of the witness to occur." I've chaired meetings like that, especially in job interviews -- Biden acknowledged that SC hearings were interviews, not trials -- and EEO guidelines compel hiring agencies to adopt certain standards of conduct. Biden may choose not to address that now, but this is the crux of the problem. He did not do his job.
Second, I was struck by the deference the women observed toward Joe Biden. Perhaps they should have been better prepared with followup questions. His contention was that the transcripts show that he did not engage in the same kind of character assassination that others did. I wish that one of the interviewers had asked about why he did not call the three other women who were prepared to corroborate Anita Hill's testimony. Again, he didn't do his job.
42
All this helps Joe with his base of male voters who went for Trump but will vote for Joe. Those who want to bring a good man down look ridiculous in context of foreign policy, allies, separation of powers, it's not all about one woman who can't get over a thing 27 years ago.
Joe looks like who he is, an ender statesman with eyes on the big issues, a gentleman being bullied by women who are on a high horse. This is part of why I no longer am a Democrat but an Independent.
I don't want a talk show to choose my president.
9
The Dems will lose again if they nominate Biden. They need to brake away from the by-gone politicians like him to have any chance of beating Trump.
36
Anita Hill was sitting at another table. I could not get behind her to put my hands on her and smell her hair. I could not comfort Anita in my own way.
13
Many people evolve over thier lifetime and admit to changing, growing. The fact that he is not willing to say that he regrets the things he said to Anita Hill and after the recent touching incident says something about who he is. I admire people who admit they regret something in their past. I do not admire someone who cannot say I'm sorry. We have had enough of that kind of arrogance.
29
Making unwanted touching the victims fault is inexcusable. Goodbye Joe.
7
I've lost all respect for him in 48 hours. He keeps presenting himself as powerless and ultimately not responsible during those hearings, which he led. I hope he drops out of the race before he even gets started.
41
I watched the Clarence Thomas hearings, and the way Anita Hill was questioned was inexcusable. But if Joe Biden should apologize then everyone else on the committee should as well, and the senators that voted to confirm Thomas. If I remember, Biden voted no...
5
In his defense, he didn't have control over the Republican Senators. He can't deny them the opportunity to cross examine Dr. Hill. He certainly could have been a more forceful advocate on her behalf, but the idea he could have prevented the harsh questions and innuendo is silly. He was the Chairman of the committee, not the dictator of it.
8
So interesting. Comments here reflect the complete absence of voter compromise needed to put forth a competitive democratic candidate. Think about it, those running are either too naive, sexist, male, female, old, young, idealistic, etc... etc....etc...
No one will be perfect, but they do need to be able to win.
8
@Independent Voter - precisely... and I am as liberal as you can get on most issues.
1
@Independent Voter unfortunately you are right BUT I am afraid that 2020 will go like 2016 where 47% of the voters did not vote. Many were really divided about voting for Clinton and stayed home, afraid same thing will happen here...each person drawing personal lines in the sand and then not getting out to vote. Biden is a lot like HRC .
2
@Independent Voter.. I wholeheartedly disagree with you. Biden is everything that is wrong with the Old Guard of the Democratic Party. His responsibility lies with him and him alone. The Democratic Party keeps trying to force these people (Hilary) down our throats. Biden knew this question was coming and still doesn't have an answer. Shame on him and the DNC. This is a Shame.
3
We need to get out of the politically correct weeds regarding Joe Biden's treatment of Anita Hill, and let the candidates campaign in a healthy environment. Let's try not to re-elect Trump. His base will turn out; he doesn't need help from liberals who are stuck in some kind of fake emotional limbo waiting for what they consider an appropriate level of contrition from Joe Biden.
10
@RE
Yeh, people only trot out that that whole "forgive 'n' forget" thing when it involves harm done to females by males. There are better candidates than Joe Biden, many better candidates.
1
It would seem that many of the people commenting did not actually follow the hearings and are unfamiliar with details. As was the case with Kavanaugh, Professor Hill made her complaint publicly known near the end of the Thomas confirmation hearings. Unlike the case with Kavanaugh the accusation was not about sexual assault, but rather about a toxic environment. After leaving direct association, Professor Hill continued her contact with Thomas, even hosting him as a guest lecturer, as it was useful to advance her career. Further, Biden was not the accused here, but rather presided over the hearings. That Biden called Professor Hill to express his regrets and try to reset a situation which he may not have handled adroitly, was appropriate. Professor Hill's response was less than magnanimous and frankly I think a bit over the top.
11
@W.A. Spitzer // Here's a detail that I'm familiar with: Thomas led the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission while he violated employment laws by creating a hostile work environment.
Hill endured Thomas's constant sex talk, then later stayed in contact with her powerful boss to, as you say, "advance her career." The horror. Have you never tried to stay on good terms with an awful boss?
4
@W.A. Spitzer I followed the hearings and there is one thing about Ms. Hill's testimony that I never understood; if Mr. Thomas created the hostile environment she desribed, why did she follow him when he moved from the Department of Education to the E.E.O.C.?
3
A Democratic circular firing squad is clearly much easier and less risky than actually tackling Trump.
The "perfect" (and just who gets to define it?) really can be the biggest enemy of the "good."
I would ask readers (and the Times, e.g. Judith Miller) just who among them has never done something of substance they have regretted? The important thing is whether and what we have learned from our mistakes. Biden, like all of us, erred in the past. However he has displayed an understanding of and genuine regret for that history. Which other candidate has acknowledged important errors of judgment?
Biden has two very important things going for him. Unlike most other candidates, he knows how to credibly talk with the Obama/Trump voters in the states that will be electorally relevant in 2020. And, with the exception of Sanders, he is the only candidate who knows the Washington swamp. To begin to drain it, you need to know it, not merely have a simplistic, bumpersticker version.
Bottom line: unless you pick a winner, someone who can rack up votes in the few states that are in play, you lose. Game over! Aspirational candidates are nice, but all one would accomplish in 2020 is re-elect Trump, the only way he actually can get re-elected. How will that help women?
Do you want a President who can help while you yourself stay in the fight for progress, as dirty and long as that fight will be, or would you rather just have a gravestone with an epitaph that says, "But I Was Right!"?
10
@Steve Fankuchen
Are you saying that after 4 or 5 decades in the swamp Biden will drain it?
It seems more likely that he considers those wetlands to be the natural habitat and source of sustenance that he must preserve.
7
@Steve Fankuchen. I agree with the gist of your statement. The top priority is to defeat Mr. Trump. A nominee who cannot do that (also known as the loser of the election) will fade from memory no matter how aspirational his or her ideas were. I am a feminist, and there could be no one worse than the current occupant of the WH. Tough times call for tough measures. I support whoever can win. Please stay focused on the bottom line or prepare for four more years of this insanity.
3
@Steve Fankuchen
Joe Biden, Hillary Clinton and their ilk will not fight for progress and do not represent me; as a result they will not get my vote. If that means more Trump then so be it.
I will not unify behind a neoliberal (other evil candidate) to spare you from Trump since you refuse to spare me from Clintonites.
1
In reading comments both in this and other articles, one should always keep in mind the likely possibility that Trump's people are busily trashing the person they actually think is most likely to beat Trump in 2020.
12
@Steve Fankuchen good point, briefly made. and something to consider.
3
This is so simple. If you don't think you have done anything wrong don't apologize. If you do feel the need to apologize then simply say this. I am sorry for what I did. I was wrong. Apologizing for the results or the suffering of the person or group you are addressing is an artful way of saying Gee I don't like what happened to you but really, I wasn't involved. People understand I was wrong, people don't like weasle words.
7
@KJ Peters: Thank you KJ Peters! It's really that simple.
Thomas should not be on the Supreme Court.
Biden and Clinton both voted to authorize the manifestly fraudulent Bush/Cheney invasion of Iraq and destruction of the Middle East. That world-historical blunder disqualified both of them from the presidency.
11
Leave it to the "liberal" media to eat their own. The media has commenced raking Biden over the coals regarding something that transpired 28 years ago. Like Mr. Biden I am a Catholic and when I go to confession God forgives and forgets. Apparently the media is more powerful than God because they never forget anything---unless they want to. How long did they press on Trump on molesting women or declining to give up his taxes before they fell silent. Why even bother if the media isn't going to pursue the greater evils of Trump.
9
@Don Alberstadt
Joe Biden is not a Liberal and certainly not "our own" unless you represent Credit Card Companies or the Private Prison Industry.
2
WHo cares what happened 30 years ago. He's run for office - including the presidency - about 15 times since then. Its been brought up, talked about, dealt with. Lets leave the horse alone, it was dead a long time ago. I'm interested in tomorrow, not yesterday.
5
"Mistakes were made"-type buck-passing isn't the language a good leader, let alone a president.
14
He was chairman of the committee. He could have called the additional witnesses that would have testified to Thomas' misbehavior.
Sorry, Joe. This one's on you.
28
No Biden please.
It’s kind of obvious who will truly fight for the middle class, and who are too beholden to Big Politics and Big Business.
The DNC would be so relieved if Biden is their nominee.
8
It’s bad enough that we have a president who never apologizes for anything. And now we have a major Democratic candidate who offers non-apology apologizes to women. Joe, this won’t be enough for women voters like myself. You must do better to get our votes.
9
Biden is making a mistake. He should apologize to Hill for his performance in the Clarence Thomas hearing. He now comes across as tone-deaf, stubborn, even Trump-like. Gross. Shaking my head. Not wanting Biden. What a terrible way to start a campaign.
9
Who cares what this guy says at this point? I don't. Let's focus on people who stand a chance at winning the election. Biden has no chance. At this point he is an outlier and is ego driven. He offers nothing. He brings nothing. No way is anyone going to vote for this guy. Let's move on.
14
Joe, the reason I will not even consider your platform is that I will NOT vote for you; I remember vividly the Clarence Thomas hearings and your attitude was despicable. You helped put Clarence Thomas on the Supreme Court.
16
Did everyone forget what is at stake here? We have the worst excuse for a president in the history of our country and we want to lynch a guy for something that happened 30 years ago?
Time to get real, folks! Our future is on the line.
6
The Democrats need to stop caving to the Republican double standard.
Trump never apologized for bragging on the Access Hollywood tape about sexually abusing women and getting away with it. But Biden is expected to prostrate himself and beg forgiveness for what he "did to" Anita Hill when he took no direct offensive action against her.
It's no wonder that one definition of a liberal is "someone who won't take his own side in an argument."
Wise up, for God's sake. This is political life and death we're talking about. Do you really want another four years of Trump? Wasn't Al Franken sacrifice enough?
10
Get off his back, it was thirty years ago and he did call her to apologize. What do you want, blood?
6
@Alan Snipes It would be a good start...did YOU watch the Clarence Thomas confirmation hearings? A travesty
1
@Alan Snipes No blood, but a different candidate for sure.
1
Please, please, please folks, let's not let Biden's imperfections divide us. If he should get the nomination, he may be the lesser of two evils, but he's WAY lesser than the current president, and that goes for all the other Democratic candidates as well. We Democrats are GREAT at getting Republicans elected by turning against our own, and in this case, by not supporting whomever wins the nomination, we may be putting nails in our Democracy's coffin. Sad.
151
@glow worm
The issue of why and when to accept the lesser of two evils in a presidential election is entirely different from that of whether it's okay to discuss the faults of leading primary candidates. Of course voters should vote for any candidate in the main election to replace Trump. But that does not mean we should all be promoting Biden or that criticism of him is off-limits. It's April 2018, not November 2019.
14
@glow worm That is the same philosophy espoused by Leninists- Democratic Centralism, as it's referred to. Whether better or not, something to consider.
4
@glow worm
If he wins the primary?
Has he ever come close to winning anything statewide outside of Delaware?
Has he ever come remotely close to winning anything nationwide?
Remember, he has tried this twice already, and failed quite badly both times.
He is not the inevitable establishment nominee. He has no base of support, no war chest of cash, no policy platform, no draw other than the fact hat he's white, male, tall, and used to be VP. He didn't even have a signature proposal or issue when he was VP! He just sat there, making gaffes and creating meme content for after the administration ended.
"If he should get the nomination"
Who are you to make it sound like it's even remotely viable that this will happen?
11
We need people to be taking responsibility for their actions.
We need to take responsibility for who we elect and the processes we allow for our elections.
What we don't need is another president who refuses to accept responsibility for what they have done or participated in, especially as a leader or chairman.
50
@Barry McKenna
You wrote, "What we don't need is another president who refuses to accept responsibility for what they have done or participated in, especially as a leader or chairman."
For the most part, I agree with this. But the reality is, if Joe Biden gets the nomination, I will be 100% behind the idea of a DIFFERENT president who refuses to accept responsibility.
5
Biden is Hillary 2.0. He is the face of the corporate DNC, who seem just as fearful of progressives getting into office as they do of republicans.
87
@Diana Which has something to do with her demand for an apology? Or are you just trying to change the subject ?
2
@kenneth
Not at all. Biden is the subject. And I'm sorry to say that he seems more of a manufactured candidate than anything else.
It's important to voice any objections we have to any candidate right now. Rest assured, if Biden becomes the nominee, I would work tirelessly to ensure he's elected.
4
Joe Biden is now the latest unrepentant old white male. We all (except for the current occupant of the White House) make mistakes. Can't we admit them; say "I'm sorry and will strive to do better." A little humility, a little maturity, and a little wisdom seems to be lacking in my generation of aging white males [Disclosure: I'm a 78-year old progressive, white male Democrat]; maybe that's why they like Trump so much. But, I really expected more from Biden. His treatment of Anita Hill was horrid and he certainly knows it. And, not only did he seriously wound her and her career, he put the absolute worst man ever on the Supreme Court. We've already had a repeat of this with the Brett Kavanaugh circus and the tear-down of Christine Blasey Ford. American has to be better than that, and if Biden doesn't get it or won't admit it, then he's not the man I'd hoped he would be.
86
@Paul Wortman
He did not vote for Thomas.
3
@Paul Wortman "I'm a 78-year old progressive, white male Democrat]; maybe that's why they like Trump so much. "
Why would they like Trump because you're a progressive, white male Democrat?
2
@Paul Wortman
Good for you!
Brett Kavanaugh is just another privileged white male ( as opposed to a regular guy) who will not own up to his past. All either he and Biden had to do was admit past wrongdoing, It is the first and most important step to moving forward. Neither of them did.
5
Uncle Joe can’t bring himself to fully apologize to Anita Hill which is a mistake and offends many women. His run for the presidency already feels like another version of Hillary Clinton with a large portion of the voting public not enthusiastic about his candidacy. He has been in the public eye too long and now it is time to retire.
65
@Mike Do you have any idea how many voters do not remember (or never knew) who Anita Hill was ?
1
@kenneth
And do you have any idea how many young people who may not be familiar with Anita Hill are learning about her now ?
1
Good Grief! With the laundry list of very real problems we have to face, why are we spending yet more time badgering politicians into validating this absurd new culture of victimhood?
Forcing Biden to grovel solves nothing. Let's get over our privileged and coddled selves and take on some actual issues.
60
@Nadia
Isn't this an indication of character, the very thing lacking in Trump, the great Denier-in Chief?
4
@Nadia: some of the very real problems we now face have accrued because of actions like what occurred at the hearings for clarence thomas, [who never should have been confirmed]. it isn't JUST that anita hill was horribly treated..it is the result of continued male discounting of women. misogyny won the last election...apparently biden doesn't get what was so wrong about that hearing, or he would be apologizing over and over to professor hill.
2
@cl
It's a matter of degree. trump actually sexually assaulted women and he constantly denies it. That's his MO: say it never happened until it goes away. That is absolutely not what is going on with Biden.
Even the women who were uncomfortable with Biden's touch have stated that they knew his intentions were benign.
And, though it may not meet the lofty standards of the social justice police, Biden has apologized.
He isn't my choice for office right now, but comparing his character to trump's is a serious stretch.
4
While I have always believed Anita Hill, and did not support Clarence Thomas's nomination to the Supreme Court for a number of reasons, it's important to recall the political sentiments of the time, and the fact that Joe Biden was being forced to walk a tightrope.
The fact is that Clarence Thomas's nomination was supported by a significant majority of African Americans at the time (see the below referenced scholarly analysis).
https://www.jstor.org/stable/419439?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents
Any attempt to go after him - as he deserved to be gone after IMHO - might have easily been interpreted as an attempt to destroy a powerful African American man (as a potential high tech lynching, in Thomas's own words), something that Senate Democrats in general, and Joe Biden in particular, were loathe to be seen doing.
Hindsight is always 20/20 - but at the time, if Biden did not go hard enough after Thomas, IMHO, he did it out of deference to the current sentiments of an extraordinarily important constituent of the Democratic coalition.
32
@Matthew Carnicelli Exactly. I wonder how many people commenting here actually watched the hearings. And Biden is not the one who asked Anita Hill if she was a "scorned woman". I will never forget that.
Most people have some regrets about how they have handled challenges and problems in the past. I still think Biden's sins are venial in nature, and that we democrats continually make the perfect the enemy of the good.
6
@Matthew Carnicelli
If he was a skilled politician, he would have been able to explain how believing Anita Hill and giving all the witnesses a chance to speak was in support of the African-American community, particularly Black women who were and are an important part of the Democratic coalition. What he did was disrespectful to all women, who were and are an important part of the Democratic coalition.
He was a coward. If he cared enough about the Black community, he would have spoken about Thurgood Marshall's contributions to the Court and how important it was to make sure his replacement had the highest ethics.
No, instead it was a disgusting circus where Biden got pulled around by his nose...
2
Correction, In my previous post, I said Biden, then chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, voted to confirm Clarence Thomas. Was wrong. The Committee sent Thomas's nomination to the full Senate without a a recommendation pro or con. In the final 52 to 48 vote to confirm, Biden voted No.
19
American women need to put any Biden nomination to rest, where it belongs. What he said about Anita Hill during the nomination process for Thomas shows deep misogyny.
He should at least admit that Thomas critics were right! Two Wall St. Journal reporters wrote the book Strange Justice, which went into verifiable detail about his perversions and sexual harassment of employees. On the Court, Mr. Thomas has barely said a word during arguments, and simply does not add much of anything. Speculation is that he has perfected the art of sleeping behind thick glasses during any proceedings.
13
@KittyKitty7555
Biden says he didn't vote for Thomas and that he believed Hill from the beginning, and said so.
4
@Chris
Biden is the reason that Thomas has sat on the US Supreme Court like a perverted bump on a log for nearly 30 years. Biden’s comments about Anita Hill were nauseating - he agreed that she developed feelings for Thomas and reacted because she was jilted. And if he is now spinning it that he “believed her” he is as much a liar as our current liar in chief.
3
leave Anita Hill story alone..we have the worst President imaginable to remove from office..the health of our country and the planet at large is on the line, no time for petty stories..IT IS POLITICS FOLKS! This is where certain aspects of doing what is right sometimes get buried for political reasons! Look, Hillary, is not a trustworthy person, but she would push an agenda that would align with decent minded and intelligent people! And there are many other examples...think of what is at stake and back the horse that will rid the rats from office, the whole lot needs to leave
now!
10
@james jones
At least there would no Gorsuch and Kavanaugh, no small thing.
@james jones I've backed many presidential candidates over the years. But I've never had any illusions that any of them was the poster child for total integrity.
1
Biden's performance during the Anita Hill hearing was a disgrace -- he threw her under the bus. The fact that he waited nearly 30 years to speak to her -- and on the eve of a campaign launch -- is deeply cynical. And then he doesn't even apologize! (Anyone who wants to relive that drama should watch the great HBO movie about it, Confirmation).
The day after his announcement he spends the evening at a corporate fundraiser run by a Comcast lobbyist. There are 20 other Democratic Party candidates -- almost any one of them would be a better choice than this guy.
41
Oh jeez, Joe, I have thought more highly of you than not over the years, accepting your foibles as part of your flawed humanity, in common with, well, everyone... But this really is too much now, and you just lost any possibility of my voting for you throughout the primaries. Just man up and apologize already, would you? It's really not all that complicated or difficult!
32
His failure to permit witnesses who could corroborate her testimony was a terrible error. He allowed men who barely knew her to attack her credibility while barring witnesses who supported it. He willfully refused to investigate her allegations, which were almost entirely substantiated in Strange Justice. This didn’t just hurt Anita Hill: it hurt all the women watching who learned again to our horror that if we dared to make accusations against powerful men we would be brutally attacked. Where was Joe’s outrage during the “slutty,nutty” comment? And when has he acknowledged that Clarence Thomas committed perjury during his testimony? No, Joe. Not enough.
35
@BuffCrone
What he said today on the View was that the person who could corroborate her testimony did not want to testify. That is not Biden's fault. Has she gone to that person and publicly called her out for not corroborating her!?
3
You know you are old when you do not understand why your actions are viewed as intolerable by those who should be your natural allies.
You know you are too old when you can't tell the difference between wanted and tolerated contact, and do not understand why "tolerated contact" should be avoided.
You know you are too old when your war stories are far more interesting to yourself than to those around you.
Think hard Joe.
36
@Mark Johnson Why is it so important to you that he recognize that he is older now? Aren't we all?
D's eat their own. R's savage basic human dignity. Perhaps I'll vote for my cat.
15
If Mr. Biden continues to beg for forgiveness and throws himself on his sword to make a few in the Democratic base happy, he will look very weak in comparison to Trump who never apologizes and then wins. There were plenty of independent voters in swing states who didn't like Hilary Clinton and voted for Trump hoping he would not be as bad as he has turned out. They are not part of the 35-40% in Trump's base. They could support Biden but are less likely to support candidates who call them self socialist or who appear to check all the Democratic activist boxes and appear to be California or East coast elites kowtowing to all the perceived progressive groups of the democratic base.
10
Joe has had almost 30 years of criticism over this event to reflect on what he could have done better and how to make amends with Hill and the public on this, and "I'm sorry for the way she got treated," is the best he can come up with? Golly I'm glad I'm not Jill.
Is this disqualifying? I'm not 100% decided, but I think it is. It's such a shame, because Biden has many great qualities and would stand in sharp contrast to Trump in some ways. But this certainly isn't one of them.
7
@Nate "Golly I'm glad I'm not Jill." So is he.
I’m with Anita Hill on this. She’s very bright and sincere, and no one’s fool. As regards Biden: He seems affable; but politician that he is, he acts in order to have both ways. An “apology” to Ms. Hill with deflection on to others. And this is the moral alternative to Trump?
7
He doesn't get it; he never will. You either have to accept him as he is, or not. I can't.
26
It's very hard to account for the ethical and political tone-deafness of Biden's performance on "The View," particularly when he and everyone involved in his nascent campaign already knows how big an issue this will be for him. Instead of just apologizing forthrightly and moving on, he's now virtually guaranteed that this will continue to be an issue that dogs his campaign.
21
It's now obvious that Joe doesn't 'get' modern feminism - I'm within 10 years of his age but my wife has awakened me to the damage male ignorance/arrogance, regardless of intentions, can do. One regret is that those who felt harmed came out in public without talking to him privately first (I assume) - it makes one wonder about the intentions of certain accusers.
Candidates with the ego to run for President are rarely flawless so you have to decide what is most important - elections are about compromises.
37
@Chris W. --- Biden is far from "flawless." He has been carrying water for the banking and credit card industry for decades, the same as Hillary Clinton. He's the absolute last candidate, who would do anything to push back the tide of income inequality. Currently, the four wealthiest people in the USA have wealth greater than the entire bottom 50% due to the trickle-down Reagan economic policies and tax cuts that were not challenged or pushed back in the 1980's forward by the Democratic Party that had shifted towards representing the 1% global CEO investments crowd instead of workers. The Democrats have allowed the GOP to freeze the cap on Social Security and then complain that it's not going to have enough money in the future (instead of doing what had been done in the past: adjust the SS formula periodically to keep it solid.) It's why families are now faced with health care premiums of $1,600 a month and $5,000 annual deductions because the Democratic majority didn't support a "public option" that was wanted by the people. That's why we have 600,000 families a year to going bankrupt due to medical expenses, who had "insurance" at the time of their illness or injury. People are working two and three jobs to pay for medicine and other expenses. Half of the Democrats called Senator Bernie Sanders' Medicare for All "too expensive" but continue to authorize $715 billion a year for "defense" that is more than all other nations spend in total.
24
@Chris W.
As a woman in her mid-50s who has long worked on Wall Street, I can honestly say that I’m not certain I understand modern feminism. It strikes me that there are many differing viewpoints surrounding modern feminism...let’s hope the lack of consensus doesn’t divide us.
3
@mjpezzi
Almost anyone would be an improvement over Trump!
Joe, apologize for not calling corroborating witnesses for Hill to the stand. Apologize for letting the GOP interrogators bully her. Apologize for not doing due diligence, as evidence from Wasbhington post reporters later affirmed that Thomas was an enthusiastic porn consumer. You yourself even said this week, "And to this day I regret I couldn’t come up with a way to get her the kind of hearing she deserved given the courage she showed by reaching out to us.” Apologize to her for the way *you* failed her. Not the 'process'.
144
@Steven Sullivan
This is really annoying me that the Times isn't reporting this, but Biden said during the interview that the committee sent a document asking a key witness to testify, and that the response, apparently, was that the witness did not want to testify. He says he didn't want to someone up on the stand who wouldn't answer questions because that would have further discredited Hill, whom he believed.
The Times should easily enough be able to fact-check this document. If what Biden says is true, there's a lot of misinformation being repeated in these comments that could easily be corrected.
3
watch a replay of that little snippet of history and see how you feel about him...
regardless of whether a corroborating witness was willing to testify or not.
1
1991 seems like a short time ago but the world has changed dramatically since then. One thing that hasn't changed though is that the media's circling firing squad remains unbroken. The Republicans have proven, through the Kavanaugh hearings, they have not moved in an inch since 1991 but Biden must continually apologize for not being able to predict the future. He didn't want to see Clarence Thomas elevated to the Supreme Court but, as the head of the committee he had to appear as unbiased as possible. As with Clinton, the media's maudlin mania for mea culpa's diminishes both the apology and the interviewer's questioning skills.
21
@Rick Gage
Why is it so hard to issue a plain apology? To say 'I should have done better"? Does you, and he, really think he couldn't have done any better? He was already being criticized for his handling of the hearings back in 1991!
6
@Steven Sullivan, And he has been apologizing since 1991. Your question should be, How hard is it to accept an apology and move on? We can all do better and don't need to be reminded of it for almost 40 years.
3
why can't he own it? what is so difficult about that?
he is part of the problem
he is choosing against being part of the solution
37
@true patriot part of what solution? I just reread the story and found no reference to a solution.
2
OMG whatever! IF I were going to really burn Biden at the stake it would be for actually allowing Clarence Thomas to get confirmed to the Court. I can't think of many acts that have had a worse effect on our country than having that man on the Supreme Court. As to Anita Hill, it was hardly a high water mark in Congressional history but his apology to her went far enough and now it's time to MOVE ON. We have a president currently defiling the White House that needs to be THROWN OUT. Let's focus on that and how best to do it. Sound like a good idea, ladies and gentlemen?
25
@ManhattanWilliam I totally agree. I don't understand why my fellow left/liberal/progressives constantly smother each other while the right dismisses everything in their common goal of the pursuit of money. Oh wait. I think I understand it now.
4
@ManhattanWilliam His actions literally did allow Clarence Thomas to get confirmed to the court. The way that he handled the entire thing, the witnesses that he did not allow to testify, all of these things allowed Clarence Thomas to get confirmed to the court. That is what Anita Hill is saying, that is the entire point. And he will not take responsibility for his direct roll in it so how can we just MOVE ON? He can just MOVE ON to retirement.
8
@ManhattanWilliam There crime here isn't the confirmation of Thomas based on his politics, even if we (you and I) feel that it's the most destructive result in a national sense. The crime is that he was confirmed by brazenly blowing past evidence that his conduct was such that he was an inappropriate choice for the position. In other words, Hill's treatment is THE only issue here, not the confirmation of a judge whose politics we don't like.
Furthermore, I'm glad YOU feel that his apology went far enough. It's good that the healing process was effective. For Ms. Hill, however, it was not sufficient, and most people agree. It's a pretty simple criticism - he is apologizing for the behavior of others and stubbornly refusing to acknowledge his role in it. Since it wouldn't be a very hard thing for him to do at all (issue an actual apology, not for others, but for himself), and so yes, people are critical.
We know Trump has to go. That doesn't mean that every democrat is immune from criticism. If you feel it does mean that though, I'll take this to mean that you won't be criticizing other dems during the primary process. Either way, the primary comes first - before we start yelling at everyone to put blinders on in order to beat Trump. Let's take it a step at a time.
4
If he were a real leader he would realize how divisive his candidacy would be and step down... (actually, he would never have declared his candidacy)
21
The point isn't just how Anita Hill was treated and that he certainly should accept at least shared responsibility for that as chair of the committee. It's that it was HIS decision not to call the other women who were ready to testify against Clarence Thomas regarding his sexual harassment. Had he done that, Thomas most likely would not have been confirmed because Hill's accusations would have been corroborated. And so, it can probably be safely said that it is because of Joe Biden that Clarence Thomas is sitting on the Supreme Court.
346
@RLH How Anita Hill was treated was inexcusable, but I watched the hearings and I saw enough to know that what she said about Clarence Thomas was true - I didn't need any other witnesses. Let's also blame all of the senators that voted yes for his confirmation...while Joe Biden voted no. BTW...did you catch any of the Brett Kavanaugh hearings?
12
@Steve And were you part of the committee that voted? No, you weren't. The testimony of the other witnesses might have influenced the votes of others on the committee.
8
@RLH You believe that had Biden set different rules, Thomas most likely would not have been confirmed. Did you watch the Kavanaugh hearings? The Senators had access to claims against K. by multiple women, and they still voted along party lines to confirm: this in 2019, but you think a Chairman could have gotten a better result in 1991?
7
This is outrageous. You can't say this was a different time, before the MeToo era. This was at the height of the women's movement. As a man, now 79, I can say I watched these hearings in a rage at the stupidity and blatant sexism of virtually every man on the committee. Biden and Thomas together in mortal sin. I think I just heard that he said it had been unfair. As bland as he is, so no surprise. And he believes he is the most qualified candidate to beat Donald Trump. A PhD in sincere insincerity. Even worse, he has now been crowned as a front runner. By whom? This is almost, but not quite as creepy as what comes out of the mouths of every single Republican.
110
@Howard Saunders
That's still just your opinion and in the end we will get the president we deserve as HL Mencken long ago foresaw.
1
Stop already. Why do Democrats tear apart their own, giving fuel to Trump. The guy was part of my generation where being a “Cosmo Girl” and inviting attention were not bad things. Okay, times have changed, thankfully, and so have standards. But do you really want to eviserate this guy who served Obama and the country, honorably? Remember the saying “don’t let perfect be the enemy of good”.
Maybe you prefer someone younger, or a woman or gay. Fine, just don’t shred this man. Remember, if it weren’t for Gilibrand, we might still have Al Franken, in my estimation, an extremely QUALIFIED candidate.
35
I don’t think anyone is calling for Biden to be eviserated. That’s not the same as questioning the intentions of someone refusing to take ownership of past conduct or hoping he’s not the primary winner.
6
@ne ne na Why can't he just apologize? Why is that everyone else's fault? Nobody is taking a hatchet to him. They're bringing up his record and asking for some clarification that he refuses to give on this particular point in it.
4
@ne ne na
Please, you cannot even compare Franken and Biden.
Good for him. Stick to your guns, Joe. You've done enough. It was almost 30 years ago for Pete's sake. If she can't let it go that's her problem.
This Democrat white man apology tour needs to stop or we're guaranteed 4 more years of Trump.
16
@Bob
C'mon, he already ran for president twice. Time to give someone else a chance.
His comment that he did not treat Anita Hill badly based on what he did and did not say is really a clanger.
Serious error there, Joe. Serious error.
And I am your kind of guy.
7
Good for him . He won't be cowed by a bunch of hysterical , self righteous , man haters.
3
Dear Joe,
Global warming is happening. Trump and his thugs are undoing our democracy. Please go home if you can't get past the politics and do something that will matter once the floods -- of people and water -- begin to rise. We only have 10 years to react.
And, oh yeah, APOLOGIZE!
6
The sheer stupidity of the women who state that Biden didn't apologize enough is amazing! He was Chairman and did not control the speech of the Senators who attacked Ms Hill.
Where's their demand that Trump apologize for the recording of his unique way of greeting women?
Do they want to enable Trump to win another four years?
14
Sooo, basically Trump is going to be President again with a lot of upset people... here we go again. Why can't they find good candidates... only criminals, liars, and womanizers
4
@Tim There are about 20 others running. Biden is not our last hope against Trump, by any stretch of the imagination.
If he loses because of this I want everyone on our side to write a letter to future generations about how we, yet again, bungled another winnable election. Measure this against the fight for climate change. Is it worth it? I don't think so and stuff like this is making me really disgusted with both the democrats and the clickbait media (including the NYT) feeding this mass hysteria. Can we please try to see the bigger picture?
29
@Sasha Stone
Thank you. Losing independents and the swing states again will have far-reaching consequences that go beyond four years of another Trump presidential term. Trump will appointment many more federal judges and possibly two more Supreme Court justices. Adverse decisions on basic civil rights, climate change and the rights of the individual vs. the state and corporations will be handed down for the next 20-30 years. I wonder if the democratic and media purists will understand that and remain self-satisfied as we all suffer?
6
@David K If independents in swing states were so interested in a centrist, they had a chance to vote for her in 2016. I don't understand why so many people need to disbelieve their own lying eyes and insist on adhering to this frantic, baseless narrative of a milquetoast empty suit of a politician with tons of baggage being the only way to beat Trump.
6
@DataCrusader Well, I have conservative and independent friends throughout the country and talk with them. I supported her, but Hillary was deeply unpopular, mostly for seeming fake, dishonest, elitist and stiff. I hate it, but they were willing to try for something new hoping Trump would not be as bad as he has been. Unfortunately, most of the Democratic candidates seem about the same, pandering to various groups, playing the losing identity politic game. Trump may win with low information voters who think the economy is fine and decide that an out of touch Democrat does not care about them. I will vote for whoever wins the nomination but if the Democrats think they are going to win the general without independents in swing states they are delusional.
1
A Democratic circular firing squad is easier and less risky than actually tackling Trump.
I would ask readers (and the Times, e.g. Judith Miller) just who among them has never done something of substance they have regretted? The important thing is whether and what we have learned from our mistakes. Biden erred in the Clarence Thomas hearings. However he has displayed an understanding of and genuine regret for the past. Which other candidate has acknowledged important errors of judgment?
Bottom line: unless you pick a winner, someone who can rack up votes in the few states that are in play, you lose. Game over! Aspirational candidates are nice, but all one would accomplish in 2020 is re-elect Trump, the only way he actually can get re-elected. How will that help women?
Biden has two very important things going for him. Unlike most of the candidates, he knows how to credibly talk with the Obama/Trump voters in the states that will be electorally relevant in 2020. Also, with the exception of Sanders, he is the only candidate who knows the Washington swamp. To begin to drain it, you need to know it, not merely have a simplistic, bumpersticker version of it.
Do you want a President who can make progress while you stay in the fight to move things along, as dirty and long as that fight may be, or would you rather just have a gravestone with an epitaph that says, "But I Was Right!"?
The "perfect" (and just who gets to define it?) really can be the biggest enemy of the "good."
25
@Steve Fankuchen You're so right. Dems and the media have not been criticizing Trump. It must just be too difficult for them. /s
5
@DataCrusader
Thanks for engaging, DataCrusader!
In reading comments (and especially Recommends) both in this and other articles, I figure one should always keep in mind the likely possibility that Trump's people are busily trashing the person they actually think is most likely to beat Trump in 2020.
That is one of the reasons I pretty much pay no attention to the most recommended comments. I once got 5000+ recommends for an innocuous little comment that must have served somebody's agenda, so they turned the bots loose.
Things will get worse, but I am old enough to have seen when things were much worse, so I am optimistic.
1
The Democratic Establishment (and associated henchmedia) doing what they can help Trump get re-elected. Thanks for that! *sigh*
6
Not nearly enough. Let's hope that the Hill issue deflates Biden's bid early, allowing a less flawed candidate to take the lead.
15
@Paul Smith
His fate won’t be much different than Jeb Bush last time. He was the republicans darling until he wasn’t.
3
More seeds of strife from the New York Times. Re-litigating the Thomas confirmation does exactly what towards any goals in 2020? Knock the old out of the race? Knock the white males out of the race?
When Trump wins because of an overdose of intersectionalism, a press that wants constant race, gender and ethnicity fights instead of substantive debates, and a rebranding of everything as socialism to guarantee that those outside of the big cities vote against the Democrats, what will we have? Fertile ground for blogosphere angst and a lot of newly minted holier-than-thou "progressive" zealots?
NYT should back off and allow all 20 candidates to run on their own merits, plans, and policies, and let the party decide on the candidate with caucuses, primaries, and a convention.
Stop trying to stick your thumb on the scales for Twittesphere justice. It isn't real, it doesn't reflect the numbers, and it's a very clear and unmistakable agenda divorced from the standards and ethics of news journalism. New York put up the last presidential election winner. How's that working out for even New York, let alone the rest of us?
19
@ondelette Terrific post!
1
@ondelette NYT aren't choosing to relitigate this. Biden made the apology in preparation for his run, and Hill did not find it sufficient. Now he's being asked about it on the View.
News media are going to report negative news about candidates. Sometimes even positive news, when it suits them. Look to the OpEd pages if you want to get a sense for a slant. If you do so at NYT, you'll notice that it's not Biden they're framing in a bad light. Compared to other candidates, they're practically gushing. This is just a story about his interview on a popular daytime talk show.
2
Sexual predators can’t stop themselves. And yet we’ve heard nothing about Thomas in his decades on the Court to suggest that kind of behavior. He’s a terrible Justice because of his radical jurisprudence, but doesn’t seem to have problems with his personal comportment.
Is it possible that Hill was wrong? And in any case, is it time to let this go, now that we have a decent man vying for the nomination and a genuine sexual predator in the White House?
4
Biden should have owned it and said he was sorry for the way he conducted the hearing with Anita Hill. Women won't forget.
7
It is amazing that two standards for behavior seem to co-exist here. El Trumpo's philandering, groping misogyny is accepted while the slightest failure of sensitivity on the part of Joe Biden, a genuinely honest and considerate human being leads to hounding and a public hanging out to dry.
Joe is a good guy. Trump is evil personified, and a lawless threat to our democracy.. We need to keep that in mind.
I like Elizabeth Warren, Then Bernie Sanders, Then Joe Biden. I obviously loathe the abomination called Donald Trump.
18
Seriously Anita...he was just doing his job.
2
...he was just doing his job extremely poorly
4
Good! He doesn’t need to apologize for anything.
6
This liberal historical revisionism has to stop. If not where does it end? Is the world just supposed to come to a halt while we all apologize to each other for slights, real or imagined, that may or may not have happened at any point in the past? Get real. Learn to let go and move on already. Grow a thicker skin. No where is it written you get to go through life without ever having to be put upon in any way, shape, or form.
15
Corrected Post:
Whenever I see the word "regret" where "sorry" or "apologize" should be, I smell parsing. It does not depend on what the meaning of is is...
Nine (not eight) magic words for all occasions requiring an apology. Politicians and the rest of us, please take note.
"I was wrong. I'm sorry. It won't happen again." How hard can this be...uncomfortable, yes, but not impossible
5
Let's focus on 2020 instead of 1991.
11
@esfield We have a candidate running for president in 2020 who has a troubled record that he won't apologize for but wants everyone to move past.
1
Joe, along with every Democrat voted no on Thomas's confirmation. Anita, put the blame where it lies.
6
Anita Hill is owned an apology by Biden for his treatment of her. He was a snarling pit bull after damning evidence against Clarence Thomas and had no consideration for the feelings of a woman who reluctantly stepped into that political take-down attempt. She was used by the Democrats led by Ted Kennedy and did not deserve the treatment she received from Biden and the rest of the committee. How Biden treated women since then is far worse than anything Clarence Thomas was alleged to have done.
1
Politically correctness run amok. Everyone is so pure.
8
Apologize for what exactly? Both Anita Hill and Christine Blasey Ford were given a platform to address alleged past behavior of SCOTUS nominees they felt was disqualifying. In both cases, the process played out as designed with both nominees being confirmed. End of story. The politics of either one notwithstanding.
8
Biden's continued inability or unwillingness to own up to his past actions and accept responsibility should be taken as a warning by Democratic voters.
We need leadership and vision in 2020, not somebody who shirks public criticism and can't own up to past mistakes. This isn't how you motivate the base.
12
I’m tired of Joe Biden equivocating. As usual. No credit to him for being unequivocal about Trump. Who isn’t?
3
He doesn't think he treated Anita Hill badly? Oh Veep Biden, you have gotten not a thing out of the past decades or the #metoo movement. This is the very reason I could never vote for Joe Biden in two words: Anita Hill. I remember those hearings as a much younger woman. I could not watch all of it live, but what I saw on the news made me feel uncomfortable, in a way I could not then articulate. That there were witnesses that could corroborated Ms. Hill's testimony and Biden blocked them may have altered history. How can Biden not even directly apologize? It's not that Biden is too old, it's that he still doesn't get it.
35
@gmt
Why didn't she come out in 2008 and 2012? Time to move forward about what he can do tomorrow to repair the damage inflicted by the Trump administration.
2
Good for you, Joe Biden. I'm sick of pandering politicians who talk a lot but never get anything done. You did do a good job in the Anita Hill fiasco. What happened was not your fault. It was, among other things, the fault of Anita Hill herself.
The Democratic field is full of people who talk a good game and look good on television but have never accomplished anything of merit. Kamala Harris, for example. I've followed her career and cannot believe that she is a serious candidate for the presidency. And Pete Buttigieg? Give me a break.
I'm not a fan of Joe Biden's politics, but I do like the way he stands up for himself and for what he has done. Anyone with a long career will have failures to go along with accomplishments. Those with a clean record have done nothing. Bernie Sanders. Elizabeth Warren. Big hat. No cattle.
7
@John Smithson Nothing? Sanders may not have sponsored as many bills as Biden (and also has far less to apologize for for his time in the Senate), but pushed through more amendments than any other Senator. Additionally, by all accounts, he was quite an effective mayor in Burlington. Warren established the CPFB, and while Dodd-Frank is considered watered down by most leftist standards, she is one of the only voices in the Senate to unequivocally come down on predatory financial institutions and their treatment in a dual justice system.
Both of them have actual platforms. Why are we obsessing over Biden being asked about his record?
1
Another non-apology "apology." When will they ever learn?
6
Enough already! Biden is being attacked for not properly apologizing to Anita Hill while we have Trump sitting in the White House, surely smiling as the Dems self-destruct. Biden is a good guy and a good candidate but is not perfect. If you want to win the White House, move forward! We do not Trump to win re-election!
20
@Kbps
This is a political hit job by another campaign because he is the front runner now. Maybe even a republican scam.
4
Why do we live in a culture that believes that being sorry is equivalent to being weak? Joe come on! This is easy!!
8
It didn't take long for the Liberal media to start dumping all over Biden. He's way too moderate to be President in their view.
I used to be a Democrat but I don't recognize them anymore.
They've turned into a bunch of apologist socialists, with a revisionist view of US history and an overpronounced zeal for climate change.
5
I doubt if any apology or expiation will suffice. Some will consider this and all his other "baggage" unforgivable and will continue to dog him with little discussion of what his ideas might be. That is why Trump is looking forward to running against him.
5
Time for Anita Hill to get over it. Go to a counselor and express your anger and grief. And, move on with your life. By dwelling on the past, you are doing no one any favors, least of all, anyone close to you, no matter the color of one's skin: black, white, yellow, etc. Or, male or female.
Women may rejoice in publicly denouncing every male that has affected their life since birth, but there is a limit to all of the whining. We have professionals to out the demons in our life. It's time for the woman's movement to be positive and do something that makes a difference in our society. No wonder Democrats can't win the presidency!
11
Clueless, and is further proof that Biden lives in his own ego bubble where he believes that his good works negate all the bad.
His treatment of Anita Hill was awful and he should have apologized years ago.
But beyond all that, here’s the thing, America doesn’t need an Obama-Biden Presidency again, it needs real change. Sorry Joe, you missed your moment.
7
I have grown deeply frustrated with the way the Times reports on Obama, Biden, Clinton, and all politicians associated with the former administration. While Trump and most of his associates horribly fail in pretty much every aspect of basic human decency, the contributors at the Times seem to think that the Obama administration was made out of flawless folks. I am growing tired of reading day in and day out how horrible a person Trump and his associates are (which we already know) and how great and decent the Obama “team members” are. I´d like to see more unbiased reporting that fairly includes ALL the other political actors, some of whom are clearly decent, prepared and capable people trying to fix America´s moral compass.
7
I suppose Joe thinks he's showing strength but it's just political
chicanery. Too bad. He's a nice guy but we can't fall into the habit of thinking 'Well, he's better than Trump." We still need to find enduring and exceptional qualities in our candidates (for ANY) public office.
Go home Joe. Allow us to retain some admiration and liking for you. It's legacy time.
22
Let us not forget that Merrick Garland didn't even get a hearing because McConnell felt he could circumvent the Constitution.
Democrats have to come together to defeat the toxic political maneuvering of Trump and McConnell.
19
back in 1974 I supported the war in Vietnam and hated the protesters, thank goodness I was only 16 and could not enlist.I know now the protesters were right and the war was wrong, We do get smarter as we get older
15
Nothing wrong with saying,”I’m sorry for the abusive and disrespectful treatment you had to endure at the Clarence Thomas hearings and I apologize for any part I played in it.” He needs to move from the passive voice to the active voice for the apology to seem even remotely sincere.
27
Replace “any” with “the,” and it’s perfect.
2
Women worked to win the midterms for the Dems. We have several terrific women candidates for the Democratic nomination for President in 2020. Joe can go away. He is part of the problem and will not win the nomination or the presidency. The Democratic party continues to ignore or disrespect or take for granted its base--women, including and maybe especially, women of color--at its peril.
5
What Biden does not seem to understand is the relationship between his intent and another person's feelings. I can believe he did not intend to hurt Anita Hill-or anyone else. But anyone else's feelings are their own and their response to his behavior was that they felt hurt. Please Joe - just say 'I'm sorry, very very sorry that my behavior resulted in your pain. I'm sorry I hurt you.'
7
The anti-Biden writers seem to want a repeat of Gene McCarthy, George McGovern, and Mike Dukakis, or maybe they never even heard of them. Look at the list and you'll see that the House was taken in 2018 by centrist Democrats who are actively working to turn things around.
16
Not good enough, Mr. Biden. Our hope is to be done with an arrogant misogynist, one who is incapable of apologizing because of his consuming narcissism. At the time, Senator Biden was a major voice during the Anita Hill/Clarence Thomas hearings. Mr. Biden's input was and remains to this day one of his most lasting mistakes. His refusal to directly apologize to Anita Hill reveals his inability to accept the mores of today. I was at first happy that he entered the race. But I can not shake the feeling that he is an anachronism and still a part of the "old boys' club." I am 74, a Democrat, and a woman with grown daughters. And I say that our present candidates, women and men, get the 21st Century and its complex challenges more than Joe Biden does. I wonder how he would have acted, and reacted, if he were part of the Kavanaugh hearings. I suggest he read up on She The People. They are a growing and advocating group who will have a major influence on how women of color, as well as all women, will vote in 2020.
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It's called OWNERSHIP. The first step in redemption is totally, honestly, owning one's actions. Joe Biden would do well to say:
"I regret how I treated Anita Hill in October, 1991."
"I regret not allowing corroborating testimony from Angela Wright to be admitted."
"I regret allowing some questionable (lascivious) comments to be aired in the room where, incidentally, Anita Hill's parents were seated at the time."
This is ownership. Admit to the wrongs you committed or allowed to be committed. Then apologize in the active voice (Don't say "I regret it happened." Say "I regret I let it happen.")
Many people point out that President Trump lies. Note that the power of words is not just in their veracity but also in the way they are expressed. Direct, to the point, honest. Admit when you're wrong. Accept blame when you deserve it.
17
Biden suppressed testimony by witnesses who supported Anita Hill’s testimony. Furthermore, Biden facilitated the appointment of Thomas to the Supreme Court and even voted for him. For me this is unforgivable. Add to that his paid ($200,000) speech for a Republican Congressional candidate in 2018 tells you all you need to know about good ‘ol Joe.
9
Biden did NOT vote for Clarence Thomas.
7
His answers to the questions about Anita Hill were awful, a non apology, apology. Equally disturbing was his rambling speech patterns, as he searched for the correct word or phrase. He has not issued a single policy statement just trump is bad. We all know trump is bad for the country and world, we want to know what you would do to clean up the mess the current dotard in the oval created?
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Joe, just lump all this stuff together and say, “at the time I said and did what I thought to be right”. “I am a person with conviction not one that says what my base wants to hear. “
2
Whenever I see the word "regret" where "sorry" or "apologize" should be, I smell parsing. It does not depend on what the meaning of is is...
Eight magic words for all occasions requiring an apology. Politicians and the rest of us, please take note.
"I was wrong. I'm sorry. It won't happen again."
How hard can this be...uncomfortable, yes, but not impossible
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@Peggy
@Peggy Corrected Post:
Whenever I see the word "regret" where "sorry" or "apologize" should be, I smell parsing. It does not depend on what the meaning of is is...
Nine (not eight) magic words for all occasions requiring an apology. Politicians and the rest of us, please take note. "I was wrong. I'm sorry. It won't happen again." How hard can this be...uncomfortable, yes, but not impossible
1
@Peggy Corrected Post:
Whenever I see the word "regret" where "sorry" or "apologize" should be, I smell parsing. It does not depend on what the meaning of is is...
None (not eight) magic words for all occasions requiring an apology. Politicians and the rest of us, please take note. "I was wrong. I'm sorry. It won't happen again." How hard can this be...uncomfortable, yes, but not impossible
Then he loses the nomination and perhaps our best chance to defeat Trump. What he should have said is, "I am sorry I didn't handle the hearing more fairly. I mistreated Anita Hill and owe her and women in general in similar situations an apology. I can't redo the past but I can try to make amends in the future. If I am elected and a Supreme Court vacancy arises, I will offer it to Ms. Hill."
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@james haynes Because a candidate didn't give *exactly* the answer you wanted on what is, to be honestly objective, of almost no importance, you are disqualifying him to be President? You deserve Trump.
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@James haynes That doesn't remotely reflect his position and we don't hand out Supreme Court nominations as remedies for prior acts.
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@james Haynes - then he would have to admit he did something wrong.... it's well known Politicians NEVER do that.
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The apology should have taken place at a face to face meeting twenty years ago. To do a half baked apology now all these years later is nothing but political opportunism.
I like Joe Biden. I believe he is a kind and decent man. There are very few people that have dedicated forty years of their life to public service who have a net worth, including their home, of less than two million dollars. Joe Biden never used his time in government to cash in as the Clinton's and the majority of other office holders have done.
Joe Biden will not be the Democratic nominee for President in 2020. If my party has any sense it will not nominate Biden or Sanders. Both men are approaching 80 years of age and are too old and too out of touch for the times we live in and the challenges we face.
The path to victory in 2020 is clear if the Democrats don't stumble by trying to appeal only to the far left. There should be a woman heading the ticket and her running mate should also be a woman. Whether it's Harris/Klobuchar or Warren/Gillibrand or some sort of combination that is the choice I hope my party makes.
Trump, who never knew the meaning of the world loyalty, is likely to dump Pence for Nikki Haley. Since the Republicans lost suburban women in the midterm elections this would be a smart move.
Joe Biden would be an excellent Secretary of State. He knows every foreign leader and is respected around the world. He's a good man but his time has long since passed.
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@Mark Jeffery Koch I sincerely do not think a woman can beat Trump. Mainly because there are too many men and women who do not like strong women, let alone one running the country. Apparently, you are in the minority, which I congratulate you! Despite his age, I think, at the moment, Biden is the Democrats best chance to defeat Trump -- which should be their ONLY goal.
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@Mark Jeffery Koch I DISAGREE
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@Mark Jeffery Koch
I like all your picks but not Gillibrand. YOu want to talk opportunist? Check out her history as a lawmaker. I wouldn't rule out Sanders, either. He's more in touch than most half his age.
4
Unlike our current President, I prefer a "Buck stops here" approach to the Presidency
I want a leader who takes responsibility.
Joe Biden did not show leadership during these hearings when he lead them. He has yet to take responsibility for his actions in the over 25 years since.
Next candidate.
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@Omrider Did you watch the hearings back then? Do you know what negotiations went on behind the scenes? Do you know what Joe Biden had to deal with in that political environment?
I don't think you do. Anita Hill thinks she was a victim of "gender violence". She got her chance to make her case on national television, thanks to Joe Biden. Finding his actions and "leadership" to be unforgivable as you and Anita Hill do is churlish and childish.
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I remember watching those hearings live, and I do not remember a single time Biden treated Ms. Hill badly. He was very personable to everyone.
Strom Thurmond and Arlen Specter were another story. Is that what Biden is being blamed for--that he didn't cut off their microphones or something? Did he even have the authority to do so?
The "she persisted" incident where Senator Elizabeth Warren was silenced is now a feminist rallying cry. Are people seriously saying that Joe Biden had the power to prevent Senators Thurmond and Specter from questioning Anita Hill? I don't think he had that power.
Honestly, what is it he was supposed to have done differently?
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@Ann I was with you, and then I read Anita's account of their call. She has one good point about his complicity:
"including his failure to call as corroborating witnesses other women who were willing to testify before the Judiciary Committee. By leaving them out, she said, he created a “he said, she said” situation that did not have to exist."
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@Ann He was supposed to call her corroborating witnesses to testify.
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Biden failed to do several things at the hearings. First, he failed to make it clear that hearings were about Clarence Thomas's fitness for one of the most important jobs in the country, and that Anita Hill was not on trial;. Second, he should have disallowed the witnesses that were brought in simply to malign Anita Hill as opposed to witnesses who may have actually seen Thomas's behavior. Third, he should have disallowed discussions about off-topic points such as Anita Hill's dating live; Fourth, he oddly decided that the standard of proof should be "beyond a reasonable doubt", which is standard for criminal conduct. We use that standard in criminal cases because the cost of sending an innocent person to jail is considered too high, and is worth taking the chance that a guilty person is set free. In this case, it should have been up to Clarence Thomas to demonstrate that he was fit for one of the highest jobs in the country; if he was not selected, his "punishment" was to continue serving on the US Court of appeals. On the contrary, by not vetting him properly, we have been saddled with a barely competent judge, who never adds anything to the debate, but votes based on his resentment.
Joe Biden also set the template that allowed the Republicans to approach the Kavanaugh hearings as requiring a criminal standard of proof, rather than as a job interview where someone must demonstrate his/her fitness for the job.
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Just to be clear, it was other people who attacked Hill in these hearings, correct? Then perhaps Biden felt that, while he did not agree with them, they were within their rights to say what they wanted to say, and that he had no business suppressing them. And perhaps he felt that calling further witnesses on the topics of pubic hairs, Coke cans, and Long Dong Silver would ultimately not be germane to the question of Thomas's qualifications, and hence a fool's errand.
Do we seriously think that if, today, a nominee for Supreme Court Justice had asked an assistant out and made off-color remarks about a pubic hair on a Coke can, this would be *disqualifying*? Please bear in mind that we just read the romantic story of Bill and Melinda Gates (where he was her superior at Microsoft). I think that Biden could have thought, "Is Hill saying that Thomas ever touched her? No. Okay, then this does not ascend to the level of what determines qualifications."
12
Hey, someone gets it!
1
Oh come on, leave him alone already. He's given more apologies or expressions of regret, whatever you want to call them, than most people give in a lifetime and certainly way, way more than the current President. I don't see why he has to continously apologize over and over again for the same things. Get over it.
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@DS
Because he is running for president.
If all he wanted was to be left alone, he could simply retire, or at least not attempt to gain the presidency. I don't think his transgressions are so bad they need follow him around through civilian life. However, we should have higher standards for those we CHOOSE to lead us as a nation. And, in my opinion, Joe Biden does not meet those standards.
17
An apology and expression of regret are two different things. Biden has done the latter but not the former. An expression of regret is merely saying that you regret the way that a set of circumstances played out. An apology means that you have taken responsibility for your actions and the consequences that resulted from them. It has been nearly 30 years and Biden still can't bring himself to take responsibility for his role in the confirmation of Clarence Thomas and the vilification of Anita Hill. I am a Democrat, and while I will not hesitate to vote for Biden should he be the nominee, I refuse to vote for someone in the primary who has not demonstrated the ability to admit when he or she was wrong and apologize for his or her actions.
1
Neat. That cuts down on the number of candidates I have to seriously consider.
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@Randall AMEN to that.
Joe Biden is a distraction and an embrassament. Many voters may have wanted a third Obama term in 2016, but that's gone now. We have many candidates that I as a lifelong Democrat would be proud to vote for but Biden is not one of them Go away, Joe.
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Joe, you just don't get it.
Maybe your ego is getting in the way but you have responsibility for how the Thomas hearing was conducted and as a consequence, for Thomas's lifetime appointment to the Supreme Court.
I hope the Democrats have enough smarts to pass over your name for their nomination.
17
@wm.h.evans This is NOT going to go down well with women, but I think Anita Hill should get over it. I don't remember the details of the hearing, but from my frame of reference, she should have stood up for herself, and if that didn't work - QUIT!!! I have no sympathy for women who play victim(s).!!
@wm.h.evans, do you even remember the hearings? I watched them start to finish. You aren't talking about them like someone who really knows how Clarence Thomas ended up on the Supreme Court.
My guess is you don't, and yours and many other's real objection to Joe Biden is that you don't want a Boomer to run. Boomer's activism ended the Vietnam war. Yours has produced a rotting social media that supports bombings and shootings.
Joe Biden is an expert on foreign policy. Why does everybody know everything except the context about the Thomas hearings, and nothing about the fall of Ferdinand Marcos (Joe Biden's fight with Reagan over it produced perhaps the most famous political quote of all time), nothing about Iran-Contra, nothing about countering GWB, all important things Senator Biden did.
We need that right now. Donald Trump is working for Moscow, Rapture Mike is trying to hasten Armageddon, and Jared Kushner's best friend is the head of the religion that killed 250 Sri Lankans last week.
1
And once again we Democrats and liberals eat our own with this focus on nearly 30 years ago. I am convinced that the biggest obstacle to defeating the political and sexual predator monster Donald Trump will be Democrats seeking purity in their nominee and a news media that continues to trivialize genuinely important policy issues in favor of reporting on unimportant behaviors of 30 years ago.
37
@Dan Lauber CORRECT, PEOPLE DO CHANGE
1
@Dan Lauber Well said! The complaints are so much righteous trivia. Biden can beat Trump. Elect him.
1
Are we seeking purity or do Americans actually need relief from high cost of for profit health care and higher education?
1
Similar to a friend's condolences on your being abused, but still keeps up a friendly relationship with the abuser because, "He never did anything to me." Ouch.
63
The Democrats are doomed because the blowback for past social injustices is cresting beyond reason and causing temporarily irreparable division at a time when unity is required to beat Trump. All the social media posts with generic insults centered in the unworthiness of older white men is a clue but more importantly no one on earth can ever clear the high hurdle of liberal purity and deference to the literally countless classes of real and perceived social injustices of the past. There are a significant number of people who genuinely believe that one must be a member of any class they seek to represent and there are an infinite number of classes claiming historic injustice and discrimination. It will be an interesting show but there is no way for Democrats to overcome this, which is a real shame.
31
I am finding it difficult to understand why we expect politicians to be perfect, to have a perfect record, an unblemished past, before they can stand for election. There are no perfect people in this world.
The other thing is why we now seem to have the rule that a candidate has to represent a particular social group.
Let's get past this tribalism: a human being with experience of life can represent other human beings. He or she does not have to belong to a particular class. What empirical evidence do we have that that has improved life for constituents in the past?
19
@Giant Monster infinite number of classes? I count women, people of color and the LGBTQ community. I doubt that any of the injustices that they have (and continue to) suffered could be legitimately described as "perceived." As to having to belong to that class of people which one hopes to represent, I don't find that particularly outrageous, but I don't think that that is what people require. I think that people require that you demonstrate awareness of and sensitivity toward the people that you hope to represent.
2
@Dr John Olsson
The litmus test is now perfection - except Christ, Buddah, et. al. aren't running.
5
No more apologies! Every time Biden makes further apologies, the goalposts are moved. "Well, you didn't say X, you need to say Y, say it now!" Women either accept that Biden's apologies to date are sufficient or they can refuse to vote for him but it is time to move on.
45
@Lynn in DC
Yeah, except for one thing. He has never apologized. He has only made excuses. As if he had not had a direct influence in causing "what she endured".
And I've been ready to move on from Joe Biden for 25 years. Unfortunately he won't shut up.
17
@Lynn in DC
This male will not be voting for Biden for his failures on this subject, among many others, even though I like Joe and would love to grab a beer with him.
He has too many issues (a number of which brought down his past Presidential runs).
There are numerous quality individuals among the Dems I would be happy to vote for that I don't have to worry about old age concerns while President.
And I think any of them will beat the very weak current President, if he is the candidate.
3
@Lynn in DC no more apologies? The article centers on his refusal to make even one.
5
Why would anyone accept an apology at this point. It would only be done because he wants to run for president, it is completely fake. People act like if they force him to say "I" it counts.
80
An apology without "I" in it is meaningless. He says he regrets what happened to her but doesn't acknowledge his participation. When will men learn that acknowledging that their actions were wrong doesn't make them appear weak (their biggest fear)? "I was wrong" goes a long way when trying to repair a damaged relationship and usually results in more respect, not less, when accompanied by a change in behavior moving forward. Pretty simple stuff.
258
@Margarat
Amen!! "I regret how you were treated" is almost as ridiculous as saying "I regret you missed your flight even though I really had nothing to do with it".
I don’t dislike Biden, I happen to think he is a decent man, but I remember those hearings, and believe that an apology is in order. We all make mistakes.
10
@Margarat Exactly!
2
@Margarat
Do you even know anything about the Senate hearing in question? Have you read a time-line of how it went down? I'll bet not. Joe ran the hearing as its Chairman, and yes, he could have done things a little differently, perhaps better, but he didn't do anything directly to Hill. He wasn't one of the Rethuglicans that were deriding her and accusing her of wrong doing. Get over it already. Joe doesn't need to apologize for it any more than he already has.
1
Yes, it would have been more enobling for Biden to have said, "I am sorry I did not do more to have stopped what was happening to you during the confirmation hearings." Biden saying that, would have implied more individual responsibility for his own actions, despite the 30 years of progress in our culture in recognizing racism and sexism. When men witness oppression directed toward women, I do believe they have a responsibility to speak up. Anita is a woman of color, and was suffering from the results of two oppressions.
43
Biden needs to make two apologies. The first directly to Anita Hill. He should say, “I am sorry that I treated you so abominably, and allowed others to do the same. You are an honorable, courageous woman, and I let dishonorable, cowardly men attack you.”
The second is to all of us. He should say, “I am sorry that I allowed that charade of a hearing to happen, which resulted in the supremely unqualified Clarence Thomas becoming a SCOTUS judge. He is a terrible human being who treated women with contempt. He is also a lousy jurist, not up to Supreme Court standards. Enabling Thomas’ confirmation was as big a mistake for me as treating Anita Hill with such disrespect. I am deeply sorry.”
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@John Ranta
Thomas was going to get confirmed in any case with support from conservative Dems. The real question now is why, when Trump and the Reps are shredding women's rights like freedom of choice, Anita Hill thinks it is a positive step for her to criticize needlessly Joe Biden, the Dem candidate best positioned to defeat Trump in the key states of PA, MI, and WI.
30
@John Ranta I agree with the first part, but the second part is just a bad idea. The GOP would just accuse him of attacking the impartial judiciary and sour grapes (yes, I know Trump does both of those things too. When has hypocrisy mattered to them?), and for what?
Thomas is on the Court for life. What benefit is there to a presidential candidate going after him?
@Dave D Joe Biden is NOT "the Dem candidate best positioned to defeat Trump in the key states of PA, MI, and WI." He is Hillary-lite...he is another establishment Dem that the party elites are comfortable having as their nominee. Think back how Trump clobbered Hillary, a similar middle of the road establishment Democrat. Just because he grew up in Scranton doesn't make him perfect presidential material. We don't want another neoliberal Democrat that is beholden to big business, wall street, big pharma, big banks, etc. and where nothing of true importance (green new deal, medicare for all, taxing the rich and large corporations appropriately, etc.) will be accomplished.
22
Biden also held a fund raiser yesterday in Pennsylvania at the home of a corporate lobbyist with executives from Verizon (who oppose net neutrality) and Blue Cross (who oppose Medicare for All). Does this publication, to which I subscribe, plan on doing any reporting on that? Or is it just going to be Uncle Average Joe puff-pieces from here on out?
463
@Dominic. This, not his handling of the Clarence Thomas hearings, nor his touchy feely approach to women is why Biden is nowhere near the top of my list. Whenever the powers that be have needed a friend in Congress Biden’s been there for him. We can do better.
49
@Dominic
I did not know this, Dominic. Thank you for posting it. I read it in the NYT. under your name.
28
@Dominic, lemme guess. A Sanders supporter? Bernie Sanders Ralph Nadered Clinton, he has no standing to be leading the Democratic Party ever again.
15
Dems, mark my words, the country does not want socialism, free tuition, open borders, Medicare for all and soaking the upper middle class. It want fundamental fairness, equal chances, the opportunity to get a reasonably priced education, the opportunity to buy reasonably priced health care even with preexisting conditions, the opportunity to have a good paying job if willing to work for it and, regulation on corporate greed. This twist to the very left which is being fueled by a few loud speakers will result in the re-election of Trump.
62
@Rainy Night
I guess you learned nothing from the Hillary disaster?
Strange, how the neo-liberals in the Democratic party demand endless do-overs, but have no patience for anyone who wants actual change....
Maybe it's time to step aside, in favor of what you call "the left" -- meaning, centrist in any other industrial democracy.
It's called "fundamental fairness", though you don't actually seem to like it much.
96
Shifting a higher percentage of profits to employees.; keeping coverage for preexisting conditions from inflating the costs; providing an inexpensive education.
These are radical now. Yes there are decent if not perfect places to stop short of the more ambitious demands by Bernie and others, but we aren't going to get those moderate goals without some hard pushes from the left.
25
@Rainy Night
Agreed!!! What many people do not understand is middle America. I live and breathe it with Democrats and Republicans that voted for Trump. I understand them. Biden does too. They do not want an apology tour. And neither do I. Mistakes are mistakes...move on. Middle America is tired of people apologizing all the time. He does that and he loses. And I'm sorry middle America does not want hard core liberal ideals, even if polls say they are more liberal minded.
18