Politico reported last night that Herman Cain faced allegations of sexual harassment from two women in the 1990s, prompting financial settlements from the trade association which he led and where they worked.
A spokesman for the Republican presidential candidate, who has vaulted to the top of some recent polls, denied the allegation to The Associated Press but declined repeated requests from Politico for a direct response to questions about whether his behavior prompted the payouts.
The same is true for the National Restaurant Association, which Cain led after heading Godfather’s Pizza. It is on the strength of that business background and experience that the Georgian is now claiming the outsider credentials to be an effective president.
In a sidewalk interview with Politico yesterday in Washington, Cain did not directly answer questions yesterday.
“Have you ever been accused, sir, in your life of harassment by a woman?” Politico reported asking the candidate.
“He breathed audibly, glared at the reporter, and stayed silent for several seconds. After the question was repeated three times, he responded by asking the reporter, ‘Have you ever been accused of sexual harassment?’” Politico reported.
The newspaper, with its widely read website, based its story on a series of interviews with anonymous sources.
In one of the two cases, Politico also said it had reviewed documentation “describing the allegations and showing that the restaurant association formally resolved the matter.”
It added: “These incidents include conversations allegedly filled with innuendo or personal questions of a sexually suggestive nature, taking place at hotels during conferences, at other officially sanctioned restaurant association events and at the association’s offices. There were also descriptions of physical gestures that were not overtly sexual but that made women who experienced or witnessed them uncomfortable and that they regarded as improper in a professional relationship.”
Politico said both women received separation packages “in the five-figure range.” It also said settlements barred the women from speaking about them.
Peter Kilgore, who was the National Restaurant Association’s general counsel when Cain led the group from late 1996 to mid-1999, and remains in that position today, declined comment, saying he cannot discuss personnel matters, Politico reported.
“Inside-the-Beltway media have begun to launch unsubstantiated personal attacks on Cain,” spokesman J.D. Gordon said in a written statement to the AP. “Dredging up thinly sourced allegations stemming from Mr. Cain’s tenure as the chief executive officer at the National Restaurant Association in the 1990s, political trade press are now casting aspersions on his character and spreading rumors that never stood up to the facts.”
Asked if Cain’s campaign was denying the report, Gordon said, “Yes.”
“These are baseless allegations,” Gordon said in a second AP interview later Sunday evening. “To my knowledge, this is not an accurate story.”
Cain has several appearances in Washington planned for today. He is slated to discuss his “9-9-9” tax plan at the American Enterprise Institute, deliver a speech at the National Press Club, and hold a healthcare briefing on Capitol Hill.
