In a clear cut case of he said/he said, Republican Presidential candidate Herman Cain is placing the blame for the emergence of allegations of sexual misconduct lobbied against him whilst he was the head of the National Restaurant Association on a former colleague who is now working for Texas Governor Rick Perry's campaign. Perry's camp, in turn, is accusing Mitt Romney's camp.
It's the price Cain has to pay for coming out of seemingly nowhere to capture the public's imagination at recent GOP debates. He's upset the applecart within the party, which was apparently ready to all but anoint either Romney or Perry, the latter some might perceive as the 2nd coming of George W. Bush, now that former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin has dropped out of the race. Hopefully, Mrs. Palin was able to give Cain some advice on how to handle the tabloid media sharks who pounce on things like this. Once they smell a story, they won't back off until they're satisfied with the details.
Did Cain actually commit any wrongdoing? It's hard to say. His accusers, of course, hide under the shield of anonymity, and in this day and age, it's sensible, since they don't want the media hordes hassling them 24/7, either, forcing them to relive the nightmares they claim to have from alleged incidents involving Cain nearly 20 years ago.
Would this be the sort of thing that ultimately costs Cain the nomination next summer? We don't know that for sure. It would be a juicier story, however, if he did, becoming the GOP's answer to President Obama, whose rapid rise at the end of the last decade to the White House secured his place in history as the first African-American President. Cain aspires to be the 2nd, but it seems there are forces within the GOP itself that don't want that to happen. While it can't be proven who actually leaked the information to the press, the story will linger through primary season, all the way to the GOP convention, and perhaps beyond. By then, the public will be so sick & tired of the scandal, they'll be looking for someone else.
So, who's really at fault? Was it someone in Perry's camp, upset that Perry isn't at the head of the pack? I doubt very seriously it'd be anyone in Romney's camp. As a Mormon, the 2nd most famous Mormon in the Northeast after basketball star Jimmer Fredette's rapid rise this past Spring, for that matter, I think it goes against Romney's inner nature to engage in such mudslinging. Lord knows, though, that he's had to endure less damaging insinuations in past attempts at earning the nomination. Right now, that isn't what's important to the news media, and that's a shame.
2 comments:
His accusers aren't hiding under a veil of anonymity. They are under a gag order that was part of their settlements. They are legally not allowed to discuss their complaint unless the other party to the settlement chooses to lift the gag order. Also, Palin didn't "drop out of the race" as she was never in the race. She never declared herself a candidate.
The only thing this proves is that repugnicans would rather see a dishonest "businessman" in charge of the government, that is, someone dedicated to making themselves wealthy, rather than a person who has dedicated themselves to public service. Government is NOT a business and should not be run as a business. Especially considering the complete lack of ethics and morals that is stock-in-trade of today's breed of businessmen.
The way the media was promoting Mrs. Palin, you'd swear she was in the running without formally declaring.
Herman Cain, since I wrote the initial piece, has backed off his accusations toward the Perry camp. Where the case goes from there is anyone's guess.
While the accusers are under a standard gag order, the media rarely, unless it's a special case, identifies them anyway.
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