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Thomas criticizes broken confirmation process

FILE - In this Jan. 26, 2012 file photo, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas speaks at College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Mass. Thomas says the Supreme Court confirmation process is an example of how the nation’s capital is “broken in some ways.” Thomas reflected Oct. 26, 2016, on his 25 years as a justice, at the Heritage Foundation, the conservative think tank where his wife once worked. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer, File)
FILE - In this Jan. 26, 2012 file photo, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas speaks at College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Mass. Thomas says the Supreme Court confirmation process is an example of how the nation’s capital is “broken in some ways.” Thomas reflected Oct. 26, 2016, on his 25 years as a justice, at the Heritage Foundation, the conservative think tank where his wife once worked. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer, File) FILE - In this Jan. 26, 2012 file photo, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas speaks at College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Mass. Thomas says the Supreme Court confirmation process is an example of how the nation’s capital is “broken in some ways.” Thomas reflected Oct. 26, 2016, on his 25 years as a justice, at the Heritage Foundation, the conservative think tank where his wife once worked. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) – Justice Clarence Thomas says the Supreme Court confirmation process is an example of how the nation’s capital is “broken in some ways.”

Thomas reflected Wednesday on his 25 years as a justice while speaking at the Heritage Foundation, the conservative think tank where his wife once worked.

The 68-year-old Thomas went through a very contentious confirmation in 1991, when he faced allegations that he sexually harassed Anita Hill when they were colleagues in the federal government.

Thomas says people in Washington prefer to “annihilate” someone with whom they disagree instead of confronting their disagreements.

He did not mention the stalled Supreme Court nomination of Judge Merrick Garland. President Barack Obama nominated Garland in March to take the seat of the late Justice Antonin Scalia.