Breyer’s statements came in response to a question posed by PBS NewsHour Supreme Court analyst Marcia Coyle about his views on Thomas and a potential Supreme Court code of ethics, according to Bloomberg Law. Breyer said that Thomas, who has recently been under attack by Democratic lawmakers for a ProPublica report alleging he violated ethics rules by failing to disclose expense paid vacations provided by friend and billionaire Harlan Crow, is “a friend of his.”

“As far as I’m concerned, I sat next to him on the bench for 28 years,” Breyer said, according to the outlet. “I like him. He’s a friend of mine. I’ve never seen him do anything underhanded or say anything underhanded.”

“My personal point of view is he’s a man of integrity,” Breyer continued.