Sharon Bialek says Herman Cain made inappropriate advances
A woman who worked with Herman Cain in the 1990s says he made unwanted advances toward her when she sought his help looking for a new job.
The woman, Sharon Bialek, said she met Cain for dinner in the summer of 1997 after she had lost her job at a foundation affiliated with the National Restaurant Association. She told reporters at a press conference in New York that the incident took place in a car after a dinner meeting in Washington.
Continue ReadingWhen she arrived in Washington to meet Cain, she found he had upgraded her hotel suite. Cain took her to dinner, then took her over to see the National Restaurant Association headquarters. But Cain stopped the car outside the group’s office and put his hand on her leg beneath her skirt, she said.
Bialek says she told Cain at the time: “What are you doing, you know I have a boyfriend, this isn’t what I came here for.” Bialek said Cain said, “You want a job don’t you?”
Cain’s campaign denies her allegations.
“Just as the country finally begins to refocus on our crippling $15 trillion national debt and the unacceptably high unemployment rate, now activist celebrity lawyer Gloria Allred is bringing forth more false accusations against the character of Republican front-runner Herman Cain,” the campaign said in the statement.
“All allegations of harassment against Mr. Cain are completely false. Mr. Cain has never harassed anyone. Fortunately the American people will not allow Mr. Cain’s bold “9-9-9 Plan”, clear foreign policy vision and plans for energy independence to be overshadowed by these bogus attacks,” the statement continued.
Bialek told of sitting next to Cain at a dinner and a lunch at an NRA function, including one where Cain was the keynote speaker. “He was incredibly inspirational. When he sat down, I said to him, ‘When are you running for president?” Bialek said.
A month later she was let go by the foundation and she set up a meeting with Cain. He asked her over dinner what their meeting was about.
“Actually, Herman, my boyfriend whom you met, suggested that I meet with you because he thought you could help me because I really need a job,” she recalled saying to Cain. “I was wondering if there’s anything available at the state association level or perhaps if you could speak to someone at the foundation to try to get my job back, perhaps even in a different department. He said, ‘I’ll look into that.’”
After dinner Cain took her over to see the National Restaurant Association headquarters. But Cain stopped the car about a clock away, Bialek said.
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