(CNN) On Tuesday in New York, Joe Biden talked openly about the regret and frustration he feels for the way in which the 1991 Supreme Court confirmation of Clarence Thomas -- which the then Delaware senator oversaw as chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee -- played out.

Speaking about Anita Hill, a former co-worker of Thomas' who alleged that he had harassed her, Biden said this

"We knew a lot less about the extent of harassment back then, over 30 years ago. She paid a terrible price, she was abused for the hearing. She was taken advantage of. Her reputation was attacked. I wish I could have done something. 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."

Biden's comments were part of a broader condemnation of what he called a "white man's culture" that has dominated in society -- and the Senate -- and that Biden believes has "got to change." (He added that he did ultimately vote against Thomas' confirmation.)

Which is a good sentiment! And the right sentiment for a candidate who very soon will be running for the Democratic presidential nomination. The problem for Biden -- and the Hill testimony makes it plainly -- is that he came of age in a very different political time, when "white man's culture" was totally and completely dominant. And, even more problematically for Biden, he has decades upon decades of recorded Senate votes that, if properly utilized by one of his Democratic opponents (or several of them) could cast him as someone who simply is not made for these times.

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