Cain’s Accuser Won’t Be Talking to Media ‘Anytime Soon,’ Says Attorney
One of the two females who levied a sexual harassment complaint against Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain has indicated that it is “unlikely” she will be coming forward anytime soon. Though she has discussed with her lawyer the possibility of being released from an agreement with the National Restaurant Association that keeps the details of the case confidential, the lawyer asserts that she may be constrained in other ways and is currently not inclined to talk.
Attorney Joel Bennett, who represents one of the two women who received a settlement after leaving the National Restaurant Association, has said that his client has asked him to quit taking to the media for the time being.
On Sunday Politico broke a story saying that while Cain was president of the restaurant association in the late 1990’s, two female employees accused him of sexual harassment and were ultimately given a severance package as part of a settlement agreement that also stated neither side was to publically discuss the issue.
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When first approached about the accusations and the settlements, Cain denied having any knowledge of the harassment claims or the settlement, saying the claims were “false” and a "witch hunt," but later backtracked and started revealing small details on what he thought may have happened. Cain also has accused the media of trying to engage in a “smear campaign,” since he is an African American conservative.
Then on Tuesday, Bennett said he was in the process of contacting Peter Kilgore, the associations general counsel, to formally request that the confidentially provision be lifted so his client could legally discuss the matter.
“I’m going to ask him to send me something in writing which says that they’re [NRA] waiving the relevant paragraphs of the 1999 settlement,” said Bennett in an interview with Politico.
However, NRA spokesperson Sue Bentley issued a statement in response that said:
“We have seen the media reports that attorney Joel Bennett is publicly making requests on behalf of a former National Restaurant Association employee. Mr. Bennett has not been in contact with the Association. If we are contacted by Mr. Bennett, we will respond as appropriate.”
The New York Times reported that former employees who knew the women who says Cain harassed her, received a years salary or around $35,000 as part of her severance and that the incident where the harassment took place was “in the context of a work outing during which there had been heavy drinking.”
Cain has repeatedly said he does not recall any specifics of the incidents in question.
Bennett has said he still plans to request that the association release his client from the agreement so she can publically discuss the issue if she so chooses.
“She’s been very upset about this since the story broke…because Mr. Cain has been giving the impression she came out and made false allegations,” Bennett said on CNN Tuesday evening. “That’s certainly not true, and she’ still deciding once we hear from the restaurant association what she’ll do if they’ll waive the confidentially. Until they do, she’s not going to speak out.”
It is being reported that Bennett’s client is now a federal employee whose husband is a registered lobbyist. Federal employees are covered by what is known as the “Hatch Act,” which prohibits employees of the federal government from participating in certain political activities.
Regardless of the political fallout coming from the extensive coverage Cain has received in the past two days, his fundraising has exploded as the campaign has raked in over $400,000 in donations.
Meanwhile, Cain has kept a busy campaign schedule as he spoke to a technology group in Northern Virginia and will venture to the private Capitol Hill Club for a meeting with GOP congressmen.
