Herman Cain has recently been accused for sexual harassment while he was head of the National Restaurant Association. As of now, four women have come forward offering the media their side of the story which allegedly involves sexually suggestive remarks, gestures, and even an invitation to Cain’s apartment.
Cain began by pleading ignorance for three of the alleged cases and downplaying the incident for the other claiming that he was only commenting that the women was “as tall as my [Herman Cain’s] wife… five feet tall.” Two the accusers, however, have already identified themselves.
Sharon Bailek was the first woman to publicly allege Cain of sexual harassment and as heroic or victimized the media portrays Baiek’s testimony to be, it isn’t the silver bullet to bring down Cain’s campaign. As far as the public knowledge is concerned, no lawsuit or EEOC complaint was filed nor was there a deposition.
The dearth of documented facts forces the situation into a he-said-she-said scenario. In a sexual harassment debacle like this one, the politician involved needs to double down and deny everything until the smoking gun is waved in his face.
Consider the example of Clarence Thomas and his assistant Anita Hill. Thomas’s confirmation hearings for the Supreme Court were reopened when Anita Hill publicly testified that Thomas had sexually harassed her during his term in the Equal Employment and Opportunity Commission. Although her statement was corroborated by witnesses and confirmed by a polygraph test Thomas vehemently denied the allegations and labeled the hearing as a “high-tech lynching for uppity blacks.” Consequently, Clarence Thomas is still sitting comfortably at his tenured seat on the Supreme Court bench.
New developments, however, are about to put Cain’s political skills to the test. The first anonymous accuser, Karen Kraushaar, has now revealed herself and she apparently has documented copies of her allegations. The documents could contain evidence and filings with government agencies like the E.E.O.C.
If it is truly the case that Herman Cain is being less than truthful in regards to the incidents involving these three women and there is proof beyond the circumstantial supporting their allegations, Cain needs to drop the act and apologize, apologize, apologize. Although his accusers now seem to control the fate of his campaign, paradoxically, Cain, himself, has all the information necessary to make the best decision in this moment of uncertainty.
