The predicate of those gags, of course, was Ace’s previous assault on Rush Limbaugh for having asserted that all rock-ribbed True Conservatives are standing strong with Herman Cain. So Ace is in the Gloat Zone, which isn’t exactly good news for Herman Cain and therefore was also enough to make my Monday especially Monday-ish.
A former employee of the United States Agency for International Development says Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain asked her to help arrange a dinner date for him with a female audience member following a speech he delivered nine years ago. . . .
“I couldn’t swear that he had some untoward intentions, but we all thought his tone was suspect and we didn’t feel comfortable putting him in touch with that woman,” Donella recalled.
“I think [Cain] should not be a serious candidate for the presidential nomination because of what I’ve seen,” said Donella, an independent who said she voted for President Obama in 2008 and probably will again next year. “He’s not a person I would want running the country.”
You see how the Penumbra of Suspicion envelops everything at this point, and causes us to ask how the shadow can possibly be lifted. Whereas last week, I could shrug at the Cain critics who were carping about what they saw as the ineptitude of Team Cain’s response, now I’m wondering: What would a “good” response look like, given the changed nature of the story? Is any “good” response really possible?
See, it was one thing to hear people criticize Team Cain’s media strategy, because there isn’t a Republican operative above the rank of intern who doesn’t consider himself an expert on media strategy. That kind of carping is therefore routine and expected, and I could play the same game, if I wanted to degrade myself to the status of Wannabe GOP “Media Strategist.”
Squawking from a bunch of dime-a-dozen assholes doesn’t bother me much. What started bothering me late last week, however, was the hunch that all the clever media strategy in the world might be futile, and that the fate of Cain’s campaign was really not contingent on “strategy” at all. If I were in a position to advise Cain at this moment, the only thing I could advise him is to pray.
The MSM will do its “penance” for ignoring Juanita Brodderick by conferring absolute moral authority upon Sharon Bialek, who (again, if its all true, and we really will never know) has had the good luck of experiencing such a sickening encounter at the hands of a Republican candidate for president, and not a Democrat. She will be believed, at least, and she will not be trashed. And for her sake and her son’s I’m glad of that.
Will conservatives passively accept the power of the media (and Gloria Allred) to choose the GOP’s presidential candidate? Will there be no pushback from conservatives against this?
This presumption would seem to ignore the possibility that Cain’s supporters might react by saying, “To hell with this! We don’t give a damn what happened in 1997! We’re tired of these kinds of sleazy games and we’re sticking with Herman Cain!”
Just as the country finally begins to refocus on our crippling $15 trillion national debt and the unacceptably high unemployment rate, now activist celebrity lawyer Gloria Allred is bringing forth more false accusations against the character of Republican front-runner Herman Cain.
All allegations of harassment against Mr. Cain are completely false. Mr. Cain has never harassed anyone. Fortunately the American people will not allow Mr. Cain’s bold “9-9-9 Plan”, clear foreign policy vision and plans for energy independence to be overshadowed by these bogus attacks.
She didn’t report the incident because she was “embarrassed.”
Bialek saw Cain at a Tea Party event last month and asked “Do you remember me?”
“I really didn’t want to be here today.”
At end of her statement, she giggled. She talked about her new hairdo.
Allred confirms that Bialek did not notify NRA about the incident. Bialek smiled. Won’t comment when asked about the “emotional trauma” of the incident.
So Bialek is single with a teenage child, with no discernible means of income, and employing a top Democrat hit woman celebrity attorney and her employment law partner.
Over the weekend at the AFP conference, several people told me that they had reason to believe this story was coming from Chicago. IYKWIMAITYD. And while this kind of suspicion has nothing to do with the truth or falsehood of the accusation, it is certainly interesting. While I have always suspected Team Perry of pushing the story, the idea that Team Obama might be responsible cannot be ruled out.
Summary of press conference: Woman alleges that in 1997 after her employment terminated with a National Restaurant Association affiliate, Cain made a single sexual advance at her which she rebuffed and which he stopped after she said no. So the allegation is not one of workplace “sexual harassment” but of an alleged attempt at infidelity.
A variety of people on Twitter are characterizing this as a “serious sexual assualt,” but that is farfetched. Assuming what she says is true, he stopped when she said to stop and she did not allege any actual sexual touching, only an attempt. She says she mentioned to two people at the time that Cain was sexually inappropriate, but did not mention to details to them.
In an interview after Ms. Bialek’s news conference, Joel P. Bennett, a lawyer for one of Mr. Cain’s anonymous accusers, said that Ms. Bialek’s claims were “very similar” in nature to the incident that occurred between his client and Mr. Cain…
“It corroborates the claim,” Mr. Bennett said of Ms. Bialek’s allegation. Asked whether that meant that Mr. Cain had physically touched his client inappropriately, Mr. Bennett said “I can’t get more specific” but added that “I can say it is corroborating.”
EXPECT FURTHER UPDATES . . .
UPDATE 2:38 p.m. ET: The press conference is over and so we now must think about what we’ve just heard.
Did Sharon Bialek’s account of events seem plausible? Yes.
If you had 14 years to develop a narrative of an event that happened in 1997, would your account of that event be plausible? Also, yes.
We have here the basic “he-said, she-said” problem involved in such cases. What Bialek says happened would be very bad if it actually happened as she describes it. But there were no witnesses, there is no evidence, and the affidavits of two people to whom Bialek told her story in 1997 are inadmissable as hearsay. You could not convict Herman Cain in court based on such evidence, and yet the behavior described, if it is not criminal, certainly does fit within the category of “sexual harassment.” However . . .
There is no need to minimize the seriousness of sexual harassment in order to understand the difficulties that arise from trying to reach the hurdle of “beyond a reasonable doubt” involving private behavior where witnesses and evidence are lacking, and where the rights of the accused are derided as irrelevant. Liberals who hold candlelight vigils for condemned cop-killers will, without any sense of irony, insist that whenever a man is accused of sexual misconduct by a woman, the man must automatically be presumed guilty.
Well, it is not for me to decide how people react to this accusation, and so I will cease to offer my own reaction, except to say: Why wait 14 years? Oh. That’s right: The accused is leading the GOP field for president.
So if you make a pass at a woman, and are rejected, you can kiss good-bye whatever plans you had for becoming president — as a Republican.
I’ll be back to aggregate the headlines and blog reaction.
UPDATE 2:08 p.m. ET: Cain allegedly fondled her leg and tried to kiss her while they were alone in a car, Bialek says. When she said stop, he did. And so your headline is:
DISGRUNTLED FORMER EMPLOYEE SAYS
HERMAN CAIN MADE A PASS AT HER
UPDATE 2:01 p.m. ET: Bialek “reached out” to Cain after being terminated from her job. He met her at the Capitol Hilton in July 1997, where he had arranged for her to have the presidential suite. Bialek and Cain met at the lobby bar, then went to dinner at an Italian restaurant.
UPDATE 1:57 p.m. ET: The accuser is Sharon Bialek.
UPDATE 1:40 p.m. ET: Either the press conference is late in beginning or else the cable news networks aren’t carrying it live. Will update as soon as facts are available.
Herman Cain and Sexual Harassment New Woman Who Alleges Sexual Harassment By Cain
To Hold News Conference With Her Attorney Gloria Allred.
A woman who alleges that she was sexually harassed by Presidential hopeful, Herman Cain, when she sought his help with an employment issue when he was President of the National Restaurant Association will hold a news conference with her Attorney, Gloria Allred on Monday, November 7th, at 1:30 p.m. (e.s.t.) at the Friars Club, 57 East 55th Street New York, NY 10022.
The woman is not one of the three women who have previously been reported to have alleged sexual harassment by Cain.
Ms. Allred’s client will be the first to give her name and to speak out about details of what she alleges occurred between her and Cain.
Note: Credentialed Press Only – Cameras may begin to set up at 12:30 p.m. at the Friars Club.
Note: There will be no interviews or questions answered before the news conference.
My personal feeling is that this is the best thing that can happen to Herman Cain in this situation. He cannot refute vague accusations, and the credibility of his accusers cannot be assessed so long as the accusers remain anonymous. So for a woman to come forward, under her own name, and make her accusations under the glare of the Klieg lights — this is good news if Cain is innocent, as he has insisted. More headlines:
Because I was out running “honey-do” errands this morning, I missed the initial announcement. Smitty posted the first alert and then called to tell me about it. Smitty’s “zombie/brains” metaphor is clever.
Perhaps at some future flesh-time meeting, Smitty and I can have a discussion about the factors involved in deciding whether a breaking news development should be headlined with clever metaphors, puns, allusions, etc. At any rate — spilled milk, water under the bridge, hindsight 20/20 — our cleverness quota having already been amply fulfilled on this story, I decided to go with the Joe Friday just-the-facts-ma’am headline on this follow-up, which will be the live-blog report.
Via Drudge, Radar Online reports that Gloria Allred will lend her considerable legal credibility to the search for the first substantial allegation against Herman Cain:
A new woman alleging sexual harassment by presidential hopeful Herman Cain will break her silence at a news conference with her powerhouse attorney Gloria Allred Monday afternoon in New York City, RadarOnline.com is exclusively reporting.
The embattled GOP nominee has admitted that several women who worked at the National Restaurant Association during his tenure as president of the organization received settlements. Politico has reported that the settlements were given because of sexual harassment allegations.
It would nearly be a relief if something other than rent seeking went on and the National Restaurant Association. Unfortunately, it appears to have been rent seeking then, and rent seeking now, with a political twist.
Helen Thomas could not be reached for comment. One hopes that does not mean she is the accuser.
Expect that this story will absorb a few more rounds from the ol’ pump action before it stays down.
Exit question: Is the addition of ambulance-chaser Allred more boon than bane to Cain?
Well, it’s a bane in the sense that the media will re-inflate the flatus fable bubble. However, it’s a boon in the sense that, the longer the factual vacuum goes on, the more it appears that the women who brought allegations forward at NRA were rent seekers.
It would also be cool if we could find a way to strike a blow against the Bogus Lawsuit Industry. We must pursue justice and try to minimize the market for frivolous allegations, which these certainly appear to be.
Update II:Hot Air offers some background on the all-wet Allred. Peanut salesmen at the press conference will rejoice at the fine circus.
Joel Bennett, whose client is one of two women that lodged written sexual harassment complaints against Cain during his three-year tenure leading the group, did not identify the woman. He said she felt “there is no value of revisiting the matter now or discussing it further publicly or privately. In fact, it is extremely painful to do so.”
Emphasis on “now.” As if to say, ABC News wants to wait until the week before the Iowa caucuses to have your client sit down for her hour-long prime-time interview with Dianne Sawyer. Right?
Update (Smitty): Da Tech Guy explores the situation at length. I agree with Pete that this has been a good acid test for the Cain campaign, and will curry sympathy with the base. Pete is having a fundraiser, which merits your attention. Pete, however, links Dave Weigel: “Cainaquiddick: Where Source-Based Journalism Goes to Die” Really, Dave, the -quiddick? Did a young woman die here? Did Herman Cain demonstrate a non-grasp of the difference between an automobile and a submarine? This piffle didn’t even rate a -gate, much less a -quiddick. At ease, young man.
UPDATE II (RSM):Jim Geraghty: “Despite all the drama of the week, we know about as much as we did Monday.” Which is the basic point I made this morning: “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot, Politico?”
UPDATE III (RSM): Professor William Jacobson catches both Politico and the New York Times spinning the lawyer’s ridiculous press conference — at which he announced his client would not speak to the media — as having “confirmed” the accusations. Is it any wonder that lawyers and journalists are the most hated professions in America?
After a tough week of media scrutiny, Herman Cain retreated to friendly turf Friday with an address to a conference sponsored by Americans for Prosperity . . .
Liberals have criticized Cain for his connection to the group, funded in part by Charles and David Koch, energy moguls who own one of the largest privately owned companies in the country. The Kochs bankroll many conservative and libertarian causes. But on Friday, Cain was anything but apologetic.
“I’m very proud to know the Koch brothers,” Cain told the crowd. “Just so I can clarify this for the media. This may be a breaking news announcement. I am the Koch Brothers’ brother from another mother. Yes. I’m their brother from another mother! And proud of it!”
15. Now at that Election Cycle, the Media was wont to release unto the #OWS people a prisoner, whom they would.
16. And they had then a notable prisoner, called Barabbas.
17. Therefore when they were gathered together in Zuccotti Park, the Media said unto them, Whom will ye that I release unto you? Barabbas, or Herman which is called Cain?
18. For he knew that for envy they had delivered him, pulling rumors like rabbits out of a turban so fast that no sane person could track them all, much less formulate a response for why he is labeled by some a Wookie from planet Endor.
19. When the Media was set down on the judgment seat, its conscience sent unto it, saying, Have thou nothing to do with that just man: for I have suffered many things this day in a dream because of him.
20. But the chief consultants and donors persuaded the #OWS multitude that they should ask Barabbas, and destroy Herman, who had been known to speak to women on Endor, and was rumored to have appeared as Chewbacca at a Halloween party, some said.
21. The Media answered and said unto them, Whether of the twain will ye that I release unto you? They said, Barabbas.
22. The Media saith unto them, What shall I do then with Herman which is called Cain? They all say unto him, Let him be crucified, for we fear he is a Wookie.
23. And the governor said, Why, what evil hath he done? But they cried out the more, saying, Let him be crucified, for who would accuse an innocent man of hanging around Endor?
24. When the Media saw that it could prevail nothing, but that rather a tumult was made by #OWS, it took water, and washed its hands before the multitude, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this just person: see ye to it, and blame Bush.
And my post from two days ago is cited in arguing that not only should they be “allowed” to tell their side, they should be compelled to tell their side — and under their own names. Anonymous accusations in such a serious matter are unacceptable. Headline at the ABC News:
Will she sign her name to it? No. Of course not. And the media continue protecting them under the assumption that they are victims — which amounts to presuming Herman Cain guilty, based on the testimony of accusers whose credibility aren’t allowed to examine. Headline at Politico:
Which is from an ABC/Washington Post poll showing a dead heat — Mitt Romney at 24%, Cain at 23% — in a poll taken entirely after the “scandal” made headlines. Republicans are extending their middle fingers to the media and saying: “You don’t get to choose our nominee for us.” But they’ll keep trying. Headline at The Lonely Conservative:
WASHINGTON, D.C.
Here at the Renaissance Hotel — the address of which is the title of the post — I was working hard, trying to get an important story written, but my friends insisted on buying me beers and talking about Herman Cain.
The Americans for Prosperity “Defending the Dream Summit” began Thursday evening at the Washington Convention Center, but the real action is at the lobby bar of the Renaissance. Trust me, I’m professional journalist. I get paid to know these things.
So I found myself talking to Mike Rogers and Chris Heneghan, stone-cold crazy fanatics aboard the Cain Train, who are a story unto themselves. But there’s no time to tell that story now, because at this writing — 12:46 a.m. Friday — they’ve already closed the bar. This is a social injustice, and my friends Mike and Chris have offered me sofa space in their suite at the Renaissance.
As I say, Messrs. Rogers and Heneghan are a story unto themselves, but there’s no time for that now, as I must pack it in and prepare for Friday’s big events. This post will go live at the blog in the morning, but I bid you good-night with The Five Most Important Words in the English Language: Hit the freaking tip jar!
Mike Rogers stands behind the National Affairs Desk
in the lobby of the Renaissance Hotel, 12:04 a.m., Nov. 4, 2011
