To say that Herman Cain has now completely made an ass of himself does a disservice to donkeys everywhere.
With one of the four . . . uh, now five women who have accused Cain of sexual harassment providing a detailed and credible account of him groping her in a parked car in the context of him offering her a job, a second woman about to go public with a detailed account because she is angered that Cain remains very publicly in denial, and a third woman who now says that Cain came on to her after a speech he gave in Egypt in 2002, the Republican presidential wannabe has now shot himself in both feet and is working northward.
It has been 10 days since Politico broke the story of his adventures in philandering while president of the National Restaurant Association.
Since then Cain has alternatively blamed that vast left-wing media conspiracy, Rick Perry, Mitt Romney, impugn the integrity of the journalists covering him (an especially swift move) and most recently blame the “Democratic machine.” That is, everyone but himself in about as an atrocious example of political damage control evah. Oh, and he added at a press conference yesterday that men also are victims of sexual harassment, which while true enough has squat to do with the mess that he has made for himself.
That the otherwise likeable if gaffe prone Cain continues to deny that he even knew Sharon Bialek in the face of what she had to say at a press conference earlier this week is stunning.
Bialek, a former employee of the NRA’s educational foundation, stated that Cain approached her on the pretense of showing her the association’s offices. She said Cain parked his car and essentially assaulted her, slipping his hand under her skirt and trying to bring her head toward his lap. Bialek said that when she protested and reminded Cain that she had a boyfriend, he replied, “You want a job, right?”
Cain has counterattacked, noting that Bialek has had financial problems, the implication being that she has gone public with her accusations in anticipation of a future payday. To this Bialek responded, “It’s not about me. I’m not the one running for president.”
Cain has not yet commented as to whether he recalls meeting Donna Donella, a USAID worker who says that he made unwanted advances to her, a situation that she says was defused after her companions suggested that they all dine together.
Donella says she didn’t witness any “inappropriate sexual behavior” at the dinner, but claims Cain asked the waiter for two $400 bottles of wine, and then stiffed the rest of the group when it came time to pay.
It will only be a matter of time — and probably very little time as the rate Cain is immolating — before someone comes forward who has seen Cain and Bialek together, if not outright corroborating her account.
Cain’s other big problem at this point is that a scandal in the making that involved alleged victims with no names or backgrounds has mushroomed into a scandal with faces. Three of the women have now been publicly identified, prompting Kathleen Parker to note in the Washington Post that in journalism, three is a trend and four is a tipping point.
A tertiary problem is that Cain is giving ammo to his competitors for the nomination. Mitt Romney suggested yesterday that the allegations are “particularly disturbing.” He added that they “Are going to have to be addressed seriously,” and they are likely to be fodder for discussion at tonight’s presidential debate in Michigan.
In fairness to Cain (and I’m being way too generous here), perhaps he is an old-school type of guy who believes sticking one’s hand up a woman’s dress in an effort to grab her snatch is just being friendly and a little nooky in return for the promise of a job is the way business is done when you’re a big shot millionaire and former pizza magnate.
Besides which, there is no semen-stained blue dress, Cain’s supporters despise the messenger (the news media), his wife is standing by him, at least in public, so what’s to lose besides the most important thing a politician has — his credibility.