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

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

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

The former vice president also spoke about his relationship with former President Barack Obama and addressed his past treatment of women who have said his touching and his conduct made them uncomfortable.

The appearance on “The View” came after a Biden spokeswoman said the former vice president had called Hill a few weeks ago and expressed “his regret for what she endured” 28 years ago. At that time Biden, who was the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, presided over confirmation hearings in which Hill accused Justice Thomas, President George Bush’s nominee to the Supreme Court, of sexual harassment and faced aggressive and misogynistic questioning. Hill has said she was deeply unsatisfied by the phone call.

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

Asked if he would apologize to the women who have complained that he touched them inappropriately over the years, Biden responded, “Here’s the deal: I have to be much more aware of the private space of men and women — it’s not just women, but primarily women.”

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.