Morning Examiner: Cain fails to deny harassment with Update

UPDATE 7:26 p.m., 10/31/11: Cain admits he knew about the charges and the settlement and showed the gesture that caused the sexual harassment suit in an interview with Greta is being reported on Twitter. For 11 days Politico was trying to get a statement from the campaign and when Cain makes his statement today, he lied. Time for him to remove himself from the race. What is going to come out next?

UPDATE 2:19 p.m., 10/31/11:  Cain denied the charges today and said he never was involved in sexual harassment from Hot Air:

I’m not sure that Politico’s story about the settlements are “thinly sourced”; they appear to have made contact with the women involved, and Cain’s team pointedly did not deny that the settlements occurred. Politico also claimed to have seen the actual settlement documents and have a half-dozen sources for the story. Otherwise, this is a best-defense-is-a-good-offense response, blaming the media for reporting the story.

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How can you deny something that is out there and has been sourced?  Only way is if you didn't have it happen and you immediately come out with a forceful denial and demand to see the proof.  That didn't happen.

Jonathan Martin is not one of the DC inside the beltway types who puts out stories without sourcing.  He just doesn't work like that and why a lot of people respect him.  He also is not afraid to tell it like it is.  Takes a long time to track something down like this, and I admire Martin from Politico for writing this.  Martin has worked Republican campaigns in the past before joining the group in 2006 who became Politico so he is not a Democrat hack as some Cain defenders would have you believe.  He must be doing a good job because Democrats don't like him either.  You can read his entire article at  Politico.

This is serious allegation that Cain so far has not denied.  More like turning it back on the reporter.

As someone who has been the victim of sexual harassment a long time ago, I find it reprehensible if this is true that he would run for President.  We had one in Clinton who gave me the creeps when all these women were swooning over him and don't need another who let power go to their head.  Saw it at Wright-Patterson AFB and other installations in the Command over the years not out of the military but out of the civilians who had been promoted way above where they should have been.  It is in all fields and it is not limited to one political party.  It is a flaw that now some women are just as guilty when they get positions of power.

Frankly, I find it disgusting that women or men are paid off to keep their mouths shut to protect the head of an organization.  I know it happens now not just with men who are in charge but with women in charge who are being accused of sexual harassment of their employees which is even more appalling.

If it turns out that it is true and women were paid to keep their mouths closed, then Cain needs to immediately withdraw from the campaign.  Taking this long to make a comment doesn't bode well.  You either did or didn't.  There is no "I don't remember" or not answering a question until an answer can be figured out.  It is straight forward.

Morning Examiner: Cain fails to deny harassmentBy Conn Carroll 

On the very same day that The Des Moines Register published their much anticipated poll of Iowa voters showing that Herman Cain was leading the Republican field at 23%, Politico published a story reporting that the National Restaurant Association paid two former female employees five-figure separation packages in exchange for non-disclosure agreements relating to their accusations of sexual harassment against him. 

If left unrefuted, allegations of past sexual harassment will surely sink Cain’s campaign. Cain’s response to the charges so far has been to deflect, not deny them. Reached for comment by Politico, Cain said he would not comment “until I see some facts or concrete evidence.” Given the name of one of the women involved, Cain said, “I am not commenting on that.” Asked point blank, “Have you ever been accused, sir, in your life of harassment by a woman?” Cain only answered with a question, “Have you ever been accused of sexual harassment?” 

Cain’s campaign later issued an official response to the story, but it was a classic non-denial denial. The statement,issued by spokesman J.D. Gordon, calls the Politico story “thinly sourced” but never specifically denies the charges. 

The Associated Press followed up with Gordon and pressed him for a firm denial. This is the best they got from him: “These are baseless allegations. To my knowledge, this is not an accurate story.” 

Notice the qualifier: “To my knowledge.” Gordon did not say that he had talked to Herman Cain and that Cain denied the story. Just that, to his knowledge, Gordon did not think it was true. This is another insufficient response. 

Cain is supposed to visit the American Enterprise Institute to stump for his 9-9-9 tax plan today, and is also scheduled to speak at a luncheon at the National Press Club. Unless Cain wants the rest of his campaign to be about sexual harassment, he must directly answer these charges as soon as possible.