Cain denies harassment claims

GOP presidential candidate Herman Cain said Tuesday that all accusations that he committed sexual harassment are "baseless," as a second woman went public about claims that led his former employer to pay her a settlement more than a decade ago.

• 
  By Michael Chow, The Arizona Republic
  Herman Cain speaks at a news conference on Tuesday.

Enlarge

By Michael Chow, The Arizona Republic

Herman Cain speaks at a news conference on Tuesday.

Cain told reporters in a news conference in Phoenix that he did not recognize Sharon Bialek, the woman who came forward Monday with sexual misconduct allegations. Cain said that her claims he groped her in a car when she tried to ask for help finding a job in 1997 were "simply did not happen."

Allegations from Bialek and three other women, Cain said, were planted by critics who did not want him to win the Republican nomination for president. He vowed they would not derail his campaign and he would remain in the race.

• BLOG: Follow all the action from Cain's news conference

"The fact is these anonymous allegations are false and now the Democratic machine in America has brought forth a troubled woman to make false accusations, statements many of which exceed common sense and they certainly exceed the standards of decency in America," he said.

Shortly before Cain's news conference, Karen Kraushaar, a former spokeswoman for the National Restaurant Association, acknowledged she was one of two women who received cash settlements from the trade association after complaining that Cain had sexually harassed them.

Those allegations were first reported Oct. 30 by Politico.

Kraushaar, 55, said in an email to USA TODAY that she came forward after reporters began to question her about the incident. She is now a spokeswoman for the Treasury Department in Washington.

"The reason sexual harassment is so difficult to prove is that workplace sexual predators try to make sure the victim is alone when the harassment takes place," Kraushaar said. "The incidents in question occurred many years ago, but corroboration may still be possible with respect to some of the incidents, and in some cases it may even be possible to find witnesses."

Kraushaar previously worked as a news reporter, and she has held other U.S.government jobs since she left the restaurant association after she settled her complaint against Cain. Her husband, Kevin, has worked as a lobbyist on environmental, municipal and health issues. He has donated money to both Democrats and Republicans. They live in suburban Maryland.

Kraushaar said she would be willing to appear with the other women who claimed Cain harassed them, so they could present their stories so "the court of public opinion can consider the allegation as a body of evidence."

Cain said he could only remember one instance in which Kraushaar may have been offended. "I can only recall one thing that I was aware of that was called sexual harassment," he said. "One day in my office … I was standing next to (her) and I gestured … and said you're the same height as my wife."

Cain, who was accompanied by attorney Lin Wood of Atlanta, was less delicate when he referred to Bialek. He implied she had a financial motive in bringing up charges more than a decade after they allegedly occurred. He and his campaign criticized Bialek's hiring of attorney Gloria Allred, who has supported Democratic politicians. Bialek and Allred appeared on several morning television shows Tuesday, and Bialek said she has no financial motivation for coming forward 14 years after being subjected to "unwanted advances."

"I was not paid to come forward, nor was I promised any employment. Nothing at all," Bialek said on ABC's Good Morning America. "I'm just doing this because it's the right thing to do."

Bialek, 50, lives in the Chicago suburbs with her 13-year-old son and fiance. Her financial troubles stem from a series of legal, credit and medical bills. She filed for bankruptcy twice, once in 1991 and again in 2001. Her fiance, Mark Harwood, 50, who works in the medical-device industry, told The Associated Press in an interview that he supported Bialek's decision to come forward.

Conservative pollster Kellyanne Conway said the campaign has handled the scandal poorly from the very beginning. "We need to remember who is running for president and who is not," Conway said.

Some people may think Cain is becoming a bit of a liability and would make him hard to support, she said.

Cain acknowledged that some voters may write him off as a result of the scandals but said his supporters have stood by him. "Many of them have expressed their outpouring support for the fact that these incidents simply did not happen," he said. "So rebuilding the trust on the part of some people, yes, that would be a challenge."

Contributing: The Associated Press

UPDATE: Google Promises To Continue Offering Android For Free

--Google's Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt says firm is committed to continue offering its Android operating system for free

--Schmidt says Google's Motorola takeover won't adversely impact other Android-based handset makers

--Schmidt criticized Microsoft's litigation against cellphone makers that are using Android

(Adds comments on commitment on Android platform in 2nd-3rd paragraphs, background on Motorola Mobility in 4th paragraph, Samsung's efforts to broaden software platforms in 5th paragraph, Samsung's deal with Microsoft and Schmidt's comment in 6th-7th paragraphs, comments on South Korea's technological progress in 8th-9th paragraphs, Google's foray into TV in 9th-10th paragraphs.)

By Jung-Ah Lee

Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES

SEOUL (Dow Jones)--Google Inc. (GOOG) Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt said Tuesday the Internet search giant remains committed to offering its Android mobile operating system for free to its handset manufacturing partners.

On a tour of South Korea, Schmidt said that Google's pending purchase of Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc. won't impact relations with its manufacturing partners that rely on its Android software.

"We will run (Motorola) sufficiently independently so it will not violate the openness of Android," Schmidt said at a news conference.

In August, Google unveiled plans to buy the U.S. maker of mobile and set-top devices for $12.5 billion, a development that has raised anxiety among cellphone makers about whether Google would accord them equal treatment regarding the Android platform.

Samsung Electronics Co., the largest maker of Android-based products which overtook Apple Inc. (AAPL) in the third quarter to become the world's largest seller of smartphones, has taken steps to broaden its product offerings based on other software platforms. The electronics giant announced a deal in late September to develop smartphones and tablet computers based on Microsoft's Windows software. Samsung also plans to open up Bada, its homegrown mobile software platform, to external developers and electronics gadget makers next year.

To protect against claims by Microsoft that Android violates its software patents, Samsung has reached a patents-sharing deal that involves the payment of royalties to Microsoft for Samsung's Android-based smartphones and tablets.

When asked about the deal, Schmidt didn't address it directly but he criticized Microsoft's litigation against cellphone makers that are using Android. "Microsoft is not telling the truth on this issue, and they are using tactics to scare people because they are scared of the success of Android," Schmidt said.

At the news conference, Schmidt praised South Korea's broadband infrastructure and said that the country's software developers are making big strides in creating software for the Android platform. To tap on their expertise, Schmidt said Google will develop a new program for developers aimed at the local market.

While acknowledging the progress that South Korea has made in the technological field, he cautioned against regulations that will stifle the growth of the Internet, without giving details.

Google is also looking to expand the reach of Android into televisions. Earlier this year, the chief of Samsung's television unit, B.K. Yoon, said the company is considering making Android-based TV sets.

Last year, Google rolled out Internet-enabled TVs in partnership with Japan's Sony Corp. (6758.TO) but the product has received lukewarm response from consumers.

Schmidt has met with South Korea President Lee Myung-bak, executives from Samsung, LG Electronics Co. and wireless carriers as well as regulators. He plans to travel next to Taiwan.

-By Jung-Ah Lee, Dow Jones Newswires; 822-3700-1907; jung-ah.lee@dowjones.com

U.S. judge blocks graphic cigarette warnings

A federal judge blocked a U.S. rule requiring tobacco companies to display graphic images on cigarette packs, such as a man exhaling cigarette smoke through a hole in his throat.

U.S. District Judge Richard Leon sided on Monday with tobacco companies and granted a temporary injunction, saying they would likely prevail in their lawsuit challenging the requirement as unconstitutional because it compels speech in violation of the First Amendment.

The Food and Drug Administration in June released nine new warnings to go into effect in September of 2012, the first change in U.S. cigarette warning labels in 25 years. Cigarette packs already carry text warnings from the U.S. Surgeon General.

The new warnings must cover the top half of the front and back of cigarette packs and 20 percent of printed advertisements and must contain color graphics depicting the health consequences of smoking, including diseased lungs, dead bodies and rotting teeth.

Congress instructed FDA to impose the new labels as part of 2009 legislation making the agency responsible for regulating tobacco products.

"The sheer size and display requirements for the graphic images are anything but narrowly tailored," Leon wrote in a 29-page opinion.

Just because Congress ordered the size and placement of the new warnings before charging the FDA with carrying out the mandate, "doing so does not enable this requirement to somehow automatically pass constitutional muster," he said.

The content of the images would also not likely survive constitutional muster because the FDA did not attempt to narrowly tailor those either, the judge said.

The tobacco lawsuit is the latest effort by corporations to assert a right to free speech, a high-profile legal battle that could end up before the U.S. Supreme Court.

Reynolds American Inc's R.J. Reynolds unit, Lorillard Inc, Liggett Group LLC and Commonwealth Brands Inc, owned by Britain's Imperial Tobacco Group Plc, sued the FDA in August.

They argued the new graphic warnings force them to "engage in anti-smoking advocacy" on the government's behalf, breaching their right to free speech.

The Obama administration's options include appealing Leon's ruling or the FDA could try to rewrite the rules.

FDA spokeswoman Stephanie Yao said the agency did not comment on proposed, pending or ongoing litigation. Justice Department spokesman Charles Miller said the department was aware of the decision and was reviewing it.

The White House expressed disappointment in the ruling.

"Tobacco companies shouldn't be standing in the way of common sense measures that will help prevent children from smoking. We are confident big tobacco's attempt to stop these warnings from going forward will ultimately fail," White House spokesman Nick Papas said.

EMOTIONAL IMAGES

Tobacco is the leading cause of preventable deaths in the United States, accounting for one in every five deaths every year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About 21 percent of U.S. adults smoke cigarettes, a number little changed since 2004.

Worldwide, tobacco kills nearly 6 million people every year, including more than 600,000 nonsmokers, according to the World Health Organization, which has repeatedly called for graphic images to appear on tobacco packs, saying the pictorial warnings actually work.

The tobacco industry had asked Leon to block the FDA's new requirements, pending a final decision on their constitutionality. They argued they needed a quick ruling because they would have to start in November or December and spend millions of dollars to comply with the requirements.

Justice Department attorneys had argued that the money was a small fraction of the companies' net sales, so they would not suffer irreparable harm without the temporary injunction.

Government attorneys said the labels conveyed the dangers of smoking more effectively than words alone, and were needed to stop more people from smoking, especially teenagers.

Judge Leon said the images provoked an emotional response rather than just providing factual and noncontroversial information, crossing the line into using company advertising for government advocacy.

Floyd Abrams, a prominent First Amendment lawyer representing Lorillard, called Leon's ruling a "vindication for the well-established First Amendment principle that the government may not compel speech in the commercial area."

He said the case was in its early stages and there was a "good chance" it will eventually reach the U.S. Supreme Court.

The Dow Jones tobacco index, whose components include Altria, Lorillard and Reynolds American, was just 0.05 percent higher in afternoon trading amid mixed trading for broader U.S. stock indexes as investors kept a worried eye on European debt problems.

Altria Group is not part of the lawsuit.

The case is R.J Reynolds Tobacco Co et al v. U.S. Food and Drug Administration et al, U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, No. 11-cv-1482.

(Additional reporting by Brad Dorfman in New York; Editing by Dave Zimmerman and Tim Dobbyn)

CAIN ACCUSER'S STORY RINGS TRUE

By the end of Sharon Bialek's press conference at Manhattan's Friars Club on Monday, you could already see the case against her taking shape.

In many ways, Bialek is exactly the kind of accuser who could damage Herman Cain the most—an attractive blonde Republican, a mom who attends Tea Party events. But as the questions put forward Monday suggest, she also has vulnerabilities. She was fired from her job in 1997. For the past two years she's been a “full-time single mom,” and her lawyer, Gloria Allred, refused to say how Bialek supports herself. Journalists asked her why she had failed to report Cain to the National Restaurant Association, and why she'd waited so long to come forward. Besides, hadn't she known something was up when a coffee meeting turned into drinks and dinner?

After the conference, I saw the right-wing talk radio host Mark Simone in the lobby. “You didn't actually believe any of that, did you?” he asked, smirking. I said it sounded plausible to me. He gave a condescending laugh and said it was a good thing that I don't work for the police department. “Stick to The Daily Beast,” he said.

I have no way of knowing, obviously, whether Bialek was telling the truth. None of us do. But there's nothing unusual about a woman seeking professional help from a powerful older man and getting sexual advances instead. More than that, it's often hard to tell, at least initially, whether a man is offering mentorship or lechery. This is one of the difficult things about being a woman in a male-dominated workplace. Career progress often depends on relationships, and on people higher up taking a friendly interest in you. When you have a chance to have drinks or dinner with someone you look up to, it's not always easy to figure out whether it's an opportunity or a trap.

As Bialek tells it, she had reason to believe that Cain's interest in her was avuncular; after all, when she worked as a manager at the Educational Foundation, part of the National Restaurant Association, she'd socialized with him along with her boyfriend. Indeed, it was the boyfriend who suggested that she seek Cain out after losing her job, as he had always been so friendly to her.

Bialek said that when Cain hit on her—or, perhaps, assaulted her—she thought they were en route to the National Restaurant Association offices. “He parked the car down the block,” she said. “I was wearing a black pleated skirt, a blouse, and a suit jacket. He had on a suit jacket without a tie. Instead of going in, he suddenly reached over and put his hand on my leg, under my skirt, and reached for my genitals. He also grabbed my head and brought it towards his crotch. I was surprised and shocked, and I said, ‘What are you doing? You know I have a boyfriend. This is not what I came here for.'” Cain, she says, replied, “You want a job, right?”

This story is wearingly familiar. Most women I know have experienced something similar, though rarely so crude. For me, it was the professor who I thought admired my writing until he propositioned me. Friends have told me about a foreign policy pro who is infamous for coming on to young women who need jobs. Despite the myths on the right about hordes of humorous and litigious harpies eager to turn every dirty joke into a payday, women tend to shrug these things off, especially when there's no violence or retaliation. No one wants to spend her life in court, and besides, in cases like the one Bialek described, it's not even clear that Cain's actions were illegal, as she no longer worked for him. He wasn't running for president. She didn't know if he'd done the same thing to anyone else, or if anyone would believe her. Before Cain's poll numbers started soaring and reports of other women started circulating, it would have been surprising if she had gone public.

In other words, while I don't know whether Bialek's story is true, I do know that it rings true. It makes sense that she didn't report Cain or come forward until now. According to two affidavits that Allred read at the press conference, she did what most women do: confide in people close to her, in her case her boyfriend and a friend, and move on. She had nothing to gain and much to lose from doing otherwise, and men who do what Cain is accused of doing count on that.

SOURCE: http://powerwall.msnbc.msn.com/politics/cain-accusers-story-rings-true-1706750.story

EURO GOVT-Italian debt on ropes before crunch vote

Italian government bond yields approached unsustainable levels on Tuesday before a parliamentary vote on public finances that could bring down the government of the euro zone's third biggest economy.

Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has denied he is about to step down, as he plans to face down rebels from within his party before the vote. The centre-left opposition has said it is preparing a motion of no-confidence that would bring the government even if Berlusconi survived Tuesday's vote.

Shifts in the Italian yield curve and a widening gap between the prices bondholders demand for Italian debt and what potential buyers are prepared to pay are flashing warning signs similar to those seen in Portugal, Greece and Ireland before high borrowing costs froze them out of debt markets.

The Italian 2/10-year bond yield curve was at its flattest since the 2008 financial crisis around 55 basis points, while five-year yields were higher than those on 10-year bonds, reflecting investor fears they may not get their money back.

In a normally functioning market, investors demand a higher risk premium for longer dated bonds than for shorter maturities.

And in a sign of dwindling liquidity, the bid/ask spread for the September 2021 BTP was at its widest since early August around 60 bps, a level seen before the European Central Bank began buying Italian and Spanish debt in August in an effort to keep borrowing costs down.

"Now we are really reaching very dangerous levels...We are above yield levels in the 10-year where Portugal and Greece and Ireland issued their last bonds," said ING strategist Alessandro Giansanti.

"If we move above 7 percent it will become a completely different challenge for Italy to find non-domestic buyers."

The 10-year Italian bond yield rose as high as 6.74 percent before easing slightly to 6.65 percent while two-year paper last yielded 6.10 percent, little changed on the day. The 10-year BTP yield spread over German benchmarks held at 16-year highs around 481 bps .

ITALIAN CREDIBILITY

While strategists and traders said Berlusconi's departure could trigger a relief rally in Italian debt, this was likely to be temporary until a new government took power which could persuade markets of its commitment to fiscal reforms.

"As long as the market remains unconvinced of Italian authorities' determination, then BTPs will continue their course north," Lloyds strategists said in a note.

"Not far from the current Italian/German 10-year yield spreads, we expect clearing houses to start demanding additional collateral for BTPs - similar to the situation seen in Greek, Irish and Portuguese debt."

Italy has supplanted Greece as the market's major concern as, with debt equivalent to 120 percent of output, it is considered too big to be bailed out, as Greece, Portugal and Ireland were, with currently available resources.

Greece is still struggling to nominate a leader for a new coalition government forged at the weekend under pressure from the European Union to help it secure its latest bailout package.

German Bund futures reversed earlier gains as the market absorbed a sale of Dutch debt and as stocks rose on earnings and a number of corporate updates.

"We're seeing some very good buying of the semi-core (European debt) and risk seems to be better bid this morning," a trader said.

Bund futures were last 13 ticks down on the day at 137.78 with cash 10-year Bund yields up 3 bps at 1.82 percent.

SOURCE: http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/11/08/idUSL6E7M813D20111108