Mark Block: Herman Cain Has Never Sexually Harassed Anybody

Herman Cain’s campaign manager and chief-of-staff, Mark Block, made a statement today on MSNBC’s Daily Rundown. “Herman Cain has never sexually harassed anybody. Period. End of story,” Block said. This statement comes after a report published by POLITICO Sunday night which included two women’s allegations of sexual harassment by Cain in the 90s. POLITICO.com reported, “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.” 

The allegations

The POLITICO report said, “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.” POLITICO said that they know the identities of the women who gave them the exclusive interviews but they kept the names of these women out of the report because of privacy concerns. J.D. Gordon, who is a spokesperson for Mr. Cain, said to The New York Times, “These are thin allegations, this is non-sourced.”

Dealing with the press

Cain was scheduled to be in Washington to visit and talk with American Enterprise Institution, National Press Club, and Capitol Hill. USAToday.com reported that at 9:17 a.m. (EST), Cain showed up at the AEI to talk about his 9-9-9 economic plan. Watching the coverage live, this reported notes that Cain stuck to the topic of his economic plan and did not comment of the POLITICO report what so ever, even though one reporter did try to use the general questions portion of the conference to ask Cain about the allegations. USAToday.com reported that Cain is next scheduled to talk at the Nation Press Club at lunch time and will probably address the allegations then.  

Photo by Gage Skidmore.