Geraldo wants an answer to a straight up question. This information does not bode well for a presidential candidate.
Spokesperson J. D. Gordon dodged Geraldo’s questions fairly clumsily.
I feel a story taking on a life of its own.
According to Politico.com:
During Herman Cain’s tenure as the head of the National Restaurant Association in the 1990s, at least two female employees complained to colleagues and senior association officials about inappropriate behavior by Cain, ultimately leaving their jobs at the trade group, multiple sources confirm to POLITICO.
The women complained of sexually suggestive behavior by Cain that made them angry and uncomfortable, the sources said, and they signed agreements with the restaurant group that gave them financial payouts to leave the association. The agreements also included language that bars the women from talking about their departures.
We have no opinion at this point because there are too many missing facts. However, that is certainly not going to stop the speculation.
What I do find offensive is to blame it on Cain being a conservative politician. There were enough bad boys out there the past couple of years to give John Edwards a good run for his money.
Speaking of John Edwards, he keeps getting in deeper and deeper. He is now in criminal court. However, some idiot reporter claimed some old rich woman backed him. Bunny Melon is hardly ‘some old rich woman.’ Are reporters just getting dumber or is it my imagination?
Back to Herman Cain–any speculation here? Please don’t say its because he is conservative….that is such an excuse.
You can read more at politico.com.
Copious amounts of study has been done on the sexual habits of powerful and influential men. Note the difference between powerful men who create (like Jobs), and powerful men who wind up as politicians (Kennedy, Clinton, etc, etc)
@Pokie
So who is more successful sexually? A Jobs or a Kennedy/Clinton? Where does Arnold fit in to this?
Well, to the HARD left, Politico is not a left-leaning publication. But hey, I’m not trying to defend Cain, here. I’d say this whole deal is gonna work out just fine for Politico and whoever was behind this story.
Cain is a liar and should quit before doing more damage to his party.
Herman Cain is under attack “because of his race.”
No, Herman Cain is under attack for the following reasons:
1. Cain apparently engaged in conduct that resulted in an administrative decision by his employer to compensate TWO victims in an effort to resolve the problem. This is, putting this issue in context, the least of his “political” sins.
2. Cain knew when he entered the race for President that his life would be put under a microscope. His failure to properly assess the impact of this issue (whether he was a purely innocent as he claims or not) calls his judgment into question.
3. When Politico started investigating the story, the Cain campaign claims they stayed silent until they had a chance to review the content of the story. Setting aside the folly of waiting for the media hit instead of getting out in front of it, Cain personally was in the very best position to determine what the appropriate response would be. The fact a major political media outlet was about to break a “scandal” should have triggered a complete investigation internally and prompted Cain to explore the depths of his memory on everything that occurred surrounding the time frame of the alleged sexual harassment charges. When Cain attempts to justify his changing story on the payments made on the premise that he “just recalled” the settlement discussions, he looks very much like a deceptive and evasive politician. Such conduct generally results in lots of attacks.
4. After the story broke, and Cain attempted to contain the story narrative with half-truths, dodges and weaves around the semantics, and convenient recollections, he personally forfeited any confidence voters would otherwise have in him as a candidate or a person they would want to serve as President. When you make such dumb decisions, you become a target for attacks.
5. When Cain lost his bearings in explaining exactly what happened, and then refused to encourage (or authorize) the National Restaurant Association to lift the non-disclosure provisions of the settlement with the two women involved, he demonstrated he lacks the intellectual firepower to be the Chief Executive.
6. When Cain retreats to accusing everyone who is critical of his conduct AND the mishandling of the scandal by saying it is all because he is black, well, he just affirmed that he is a colossal idiot.
In some perverse way, maybe that makes him electable after all. The American public has shown a remarkable penchant for forgiving likable politicians, and for electing complete idiots.
But then, I thought I understood that the terms “settlement” and “agreement” had a similar meaning in the context of discussing a resolution between two disputing parties. To be fair, I also thought I clearly understood what the meaning of “is” was, or “is.”
So Herman Cain, you have proven that even a complete self-absorbed numbskull can run for President and lead in the polls for a week or so.
“In some perverse way, maybe that makes him electable after all. The American public has shown a remarkable penchant for forgiving likable politicians, and for electing complete idiots.”
A-FRICKIN-MEN!
Cain has dropped the ball and fumbled. Everything in the above is absolutely correct as I see it. And that’s why I haven’t worried about what candidate will get chosen. Its way too early. I like Cain. But, if he can’t handle this…….
As for Politico not being left leaning…..
There was a group of journalists that colluded to bury stories that hurt Democrats and push stories that hurt Republicans. It was called Journolist. Here’s the list of members:
http://thevailspot.blogspot.com/2011/01/journolist-membership.html
3. Ben Adler – Newsweek, POLITICO
4. Mike Allen – POLITICO
75. Lisa Lerer – POLITICO
107. Laura Rozen – POLITICO, Mother Jones
123. Ben Smith – POLITICO
151. Avi Zenilman – POLITICO
Politico started out as a centrist reporting agency but has since become just another MSM tool for the Democrats in its political reporting. Notice, I’m not saying that Politico did wrong in investigating this. I just want them to actually do more than accuse people with anonymous sources. It would be nice if they wouldn’t cover for Democrat politician either, but I expect that’s too much to ask.
And again…. Would Jonathan Martin, Maggie Haberman, Anna Palmer and Kenneth Vogel have put their names on a similar piece, with no named sources, aimed at Barack Obama? Would Politico have run it?
http://pjmedia.com/eddriscoll/2011/11/01/the-perfect-storm-of-media-hypocrisy/
The comments bring up some of the other examples of the double standard.
This is why conservatives feel that the media is a tool of the democrats.
In Cain’s exchange about race with Krauthammer he said:
But because I am an unconventional candidate running an unconventional campaign and achieving some unexpected, unconventional results in terms of the poll, we believe that, yes, there are some people who are Democrats, liberals, who do not want to see me win the nomination. And there could be some people on the right who don’t want to see me because I’m not the quote-unquote ‘establishment’ candidate. No evidence.”
There’s the race card, a blame-it-on-the-liberals excuse, AND then he says that some people on the right don’t want him because he’s not the “establishment” candidate. Ummm…isn’t the current right running against establishment candidates? Does he need the Dummy’s Guide to the Republican Party?
Apparently you might need that Guide.
Cain is not the establishment candidate. He’s the LAST candidate that they want. When he speaks about the “right”, he is speaking of them relative to the DEMOCRAT PARTY, not as the “right” vs the established GOP.
And yes, many Democrats don’t want him to win and have used racial reasons. They see him in racial terms. And btw…where do you see him use race in the comment that you used?
If he is elected President, he is a living example that a minority does not need the Democrat party to succeed.
@Cargosquid
He talks about race right here in the quote from the Krauthammer interview.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/01/herman-cain-accusations-race_n_1070564.html
Where’d you get that interpretation?
Gainesville first,
Great summation on Herman Cain. I agree completely.
@Cargosquid
That is one person’s opinion. I see no proof that happened. Again, the fact/opinion issue is getting in the way.
Odd, I didn’t see anyone from Daily Beast. Did I overlook them? How about Kos?
Why wouldn’t the GOP want to elect Cain, in your mind? I don’t think the Democrats care one way or the other.
@Cargosquid
“In an interview Monday, Cain said part of China’s threat to the United States stems from its attempts to develop nuclear weapons — even though China tested its first nuclear weaponin 1964.”
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20128920-503544/herman-cain-incorrectly-suggests-china-doesnt-have-nuclear-capability/
Here is my concern regarding Herman Cain which has nothing to do with his sexual prowess. Being President is much more than being a businessman. You have to be able to understand the nuances of foreign policy, dealing with with world. He just does not strike me as someone prepared to take on that burden.
@Moon-howler
How is a fact/opinion thing happening? I stated what I stated. Obviously its my interpretation of the events. Why is MY statement a fact/opinion problem, but no one else’s, including your own?
“I see no proof that happened.”
What are you talking about? I’m missing what you mean in “that happened.” Can’t reply to it until I’m clear.
@Censored bybvbl
I get it from the context. He was previously speaking of the Democrats, the left. Then he speaks of the right in the same statement as “I’m not the quote-unquote ‘establishment’ candidate.”
But you can interpret it however you wish, of course.
@Elena
This is covered by Steve Thomas in the open thread.
Cain was speaking of China’s naval ambitions to be a blue water navy. To do that, they need nukes. Nuclear powered craft, that is. He used it in the context of aircraft carriers. But the press use a sound bite to discredit him and misinterpret his statement. Was he clear? No. But the press also muddied the waters.
“They’ve indicated that they’re trying to develop nuclear capability and they want to develop more aircraft carriers like we have. ”
Clearly speaking about developing nuclear capability of naval forces.
Cargo,
If he was not clear than don’t blame it on the press. I have watched the video clip several times and if that is what he intended to say, i.e. nuclear powered aircraft carriers, he was woefully unclear.
Furthermore, to imply that we need to invest MORE money in the military flies in the face of how much our GDP is devoted to our armed services. We need more investment at home!
@Cargosquid
Your opinion is your opinion. You often seem to voice opinions as facts rather than opinions. Your opinions are no less valid than my opinions.
@Cargosquid
I don’t know how you and Steve can sit there and tell Elena and me what we heard.
You are building a story around what he said. I know what I heard.
If he feels he was misrepresented then he should insist that the entire footage of his interview be released. This isn’t a gotcha moment for me. I feel far better thinking your version is true. However, I am sort of a Reagan kinda girl. Trust but verify.
Where is the entire footage of the interview where Cain shows he really knows what he is talking about?
You and Steve telling Elena and me what Cain really meant isn’t quite cutting it. And remember, I am too dumb to know what rocket science is all about. I am just not ready to call Cain one. One of my best friend’s husband really is one. Light years….
(and I don’t think someone has to be one to get to be president. Strawman)