TIME Anita Hill

‘Of Course I Could.’ Anita Hill Says She Could Potentially Vote for Joe Biden

25th Annual ELLE Women In Hollywood Celebration - Arrivals
Jon Kopaloff—FilmMagic LOS ANGELES, CA - OCTOBER 15: Anita Hill attends the 25th Annual ELLE Women In Hollywood Celebration at Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills on October 15, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jon Kopaloff/FilmMagic)

Hill also said she does not equate Biden's actions to those of President Trump

Despite their complicated history, Anita Hill said she would consider voting for Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election if he were to win the Democratic nomination.

In an NBC News interview that aired Thursday evening, Hill did not hesitate when Andrea Mitchell asked whether she “could conceive” of casting a ballot for the former Vice President.

“Of course I could,” she replied.

Biden famously oversaw the 1991 Senate Judiciary Committee all-male confirmation hearings for Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, in which Hill testified that she had been sexually harassed by Thomas.

The former Vice President has faced criticism for his role in the hearing. During questioning he did not allow other women to testify on Hill’s behalf, and asked her to “tell the committee what was the most embarrassing of all the incidents you have alleged.”

Before announcing his presidential run, Biden expressed regret over his role in the hearing, saying he wished he “could have done something” to give Hill the “hearing she deserved.”

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Shortly after announcing his candidacy for president, Biden reached out to Hill just weeks before he made his announcement. Despite a lengthy phone conversation between the two, Hill said she felt unsatisfied with the apology.

“I cannot be satisfied by simply saying, ‘I’m sorry for what happened to you,’” Hill told the New York Times. “I will be satisfied when I know that there is real change and real accountability and real purpose.”

In her sit down with NBC, Hill also said that she has never intended for Biden to be compared to Trump, and that she doesn’t believe that anything she’s said has hurt his campaign.

“What I do want to do though is make the public aware of the urgency of this issue,” Hill said. “We’ve had years to grapple with this as a society and I think we’ve come to a good place and we need to take advantage of this moment.”

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