Tuesday 8 November 2011

Herman Cain says he will address allegations

Washington D.C. -- Republican presidential contender  Herman Cain will address the latest sexual harassment allegations against him at a Tuesday afternoon news conference, his campaign said.
The announcement from his campaign late Monday included a broadside fired at his first public accuser, Sharon Bialek, calling her allegations that Cain groped her after a 1997 dinner "false" and blasting her "celebrity lawyer," Gloria Allred.
On ABC's "Jimmy Kimmel Live," Cain said the campaign would "set the record straight" on Tuesday.
"The feelings that you have when you know that all of this is totally fabricated -- you go from anger, then you get disgusted," he told Kimmel Monday night. "There's not an ounce of truth in all of these accusations."
In a written statement, campaign spokesman J.D. Gordon said there was "no record, nor even a complaint filed," to support Bialek's accusation.
In an appearance on CNN's "Piers Morgan Tonight," Bialek said she was prepared for the scrutiny going public with the allegation was likely to bring.


He had said he was done answering questions about sexual harassment allegations against him after reports emerged that that two other women lodged formal complaints against him when he headed the National Restaurant Association.


But Cain told Kimmel that he had been referring to the earlier allegations -- which he had quickly denied -- not the latest "firestorm" to hit his campaign.


On Monday, Sharon Bialek, who identified herself as a registered Republican and single mother from Chicago, accused Cain of making an unwanted advance after dinner in Washington when she asked for help finding a job after she was laid off by the restaurant association.


Bialek, appearing before a phalanx of television cameras, was accompanied by celebrity lawyer Gloria Allred.


"We're going to talk about this new firestorm that we discovered today," Cain said.


"I will talk about any and all future firestorms, because here's one thing people don't know about Herman Cain: I'm in it to win it and I'm not going to be discouraged by any of this stuff," he added.


Cain's news conference was scheduled to take place in Phoenix at 3 p.m. local time (2200 GMT).


In a statement announcing the news conference, the Cain campaign raised questions about Bialek's credibility and said it was "noteworthy" that she had appeared with Allred.


"After attacking Herman Cain through anonymous accusers for a week, his opponents have now convinced a woman with a long history of severe financial difficulties, including personal bankruptcy, to falsely accuse the Republican front-runner of events occurring over a decade ago for which there is no record, nor even a complaint filed," the statement said.


A majority of Republican voters, and nearly six in 10 Republican supporters of the conservative Tea Party movement, say they are not concerned about the allegations against Cain, according to an NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll released on Monday.


All about: Gloria Allred,  Herman Cain, Mitt Romney United States,  Paul Ryan,  Rick Perry,  Michele Bachmann

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