thomas nomination. but it brought the issue of workplace sexual harassment out of the shadows in this country. our kate bolduan is live for us in washington this morning. why is virginia thomas contacting anita hill after all these years? it s a really good question, john. almost 20 years later, the wife of clarence thomas is asking for an apology from anita hill, the woman who accused thomas of sexual harassment during his confirmation hearings in the early 90s. virginia thomas, a conservative activist left hill, a law professor a voice mail at her office recently. here s the message. she says good morning, anita hill, it s ginny thomas. i wanted to ask you to consider something. i would love you to consider an apology some time and some full explanation of why you did what you did with my husband. thomas goes on to say, so give it some thought and certainly pray about this and come to understand why you did what you did. okay. have a good day. thomas says she was extend
good evening. this country h never seen anything like it. millions watched on television live, absolutely transfixed. a woman had come forward and accused a nominefor the supreme court of sexual harassment. it was graphic, it was shocking and explosive. her name, anita hill. his name, now justice clarence thomas. he went on to become confirmed for the court. she returned to private life and teaching law. well, she finds herself back in the news becausehe got a phone call from justice thomas wife, saying she shod apologize for what she said back then, which she says was the whole truth. we begin with this turn of events tonight. nbc s andrea mitchell in our washington newsroom. hey, andrea, good evening. reporte it was a classic case of he said, she said, bearing historic wounds over sex and race. the questions, why after nearly two decades, would clarence thomas wife reopen one of the most emotional confirmation battles in supreme court history? she s been living in relat
good evening. the news was breaking just as we came on the air last night, and we brought you first word of the early morning phone call that returned us to a turning point in america 19 years ago. you ll remember that political drama that transfixed americans f . for days, we all argued about the questions it raised. clarls thomas was in his confirmation hearing. anita hill accused him of sexual harassment. well, professor hill surfaced again today after that unusual phone call from thomas wife, and sharyn alfonsi is here to bring us up to date tonight. reporter: well, the big question tonight, why not? why after 19 years did virginia thomas pick up the phone and call anita hill? she says she was offering an olive branch, but tonight, anita hill is not taking it. the testimony lasted seven long hours. anita hill, an oklahoma law professor, alleging the lurid details about her time working for clarence thomas. he spoke about sex acts that he d seen in pornographic films
reporter: he was smiling for the meeting in new york, but the mothers of two hikers still in prison in iran would like their turn for a meeting. we are mothers. we are not politicians. and we are just very, very eager, clearly to have our children returned to us. the family members spoke at a news conference with sara shourd, who just returned after a year in custody in iran. shourd said until the two other hikers are leigh released, she does not feel relieved. this is not the time to celebrate. my disappointment in not sharing this with shane and josh is crushing and i stand before you today only one-third free. reporter: a ahmadinej ad is attending conferences until the general assembly opens later in week but having him in town gives protestors a chance to send their messages on nuclear weapons and human rights. activists gathered to protest the iran defiance in building a nuclear arsenal and the abuse of human rights. but in interviews in new york, ahmadinejad
be i know it is crazy to say this, somewhat satisfied because at least we ll be able to do something and pay the bills. well, and you went out on the water yesterday and you saw that the oil is still there. reporter: oh, yeah. there is still oil here along the louisiana coast, andrea. we were out at bay jimmy, one of the areas that was most heavily oiled in the months after the spill. and we were out with cleanup workers who were still finding the oil. it is now trapped beneath the vegetation. there was about a four foot swath of oil around this marsh and they were using a giant hedge clipper to take it down and then to scoop up the oil. but we went in after it was treated and you can still find the oil in the mud. so they have got long-term problems. and there are other signs of environmental problems here. we re seeing an extraordinarily high number of dolphins