A fourth woman came forward today, accusing Herman Cain of sexual harassment. And this time, publicly.
"I didn't want to be here today, and wouldn't be here if not for the other three women," said Sharon Bialek at a press conference in New York. With high-profile sex discrimination attorney Gloria Allred at her side, Bialek urged the Republican presidential candidate to "come clean."
In her own words, she gives a "face and a voice" to the other accusers who have so far chosen to stay anonymous.
Bialek worked for the Educational Foundation of the National Restaurant Association in Chicago from the end of 1996 until mid-1997, during Cain's tenure. She accused Cain of groping her one night in July of 1997, when she traveled to Washington to seek his advice on getting a new job. Bialek said the alleged incident took place in a car following a business dinner.
"Instead of going into the offices, 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," she vividly described to a room full of reporters.
Bialek said she then told Cain, "You know I have a boyfriend. This is not what I came here for." To which she said he responded, "'You want a job, right?'"
Cain's campaign flatly denied this and other accounts of unwanted sexual a released statement, "All allegations of harassment against Mr. Cain are completely false." The candidate himself doesn't seem to be interested in discussing these matters. Over the weekend, Cain sternly warned journalists, "don't even go there."
Bialek, who says she has no plans to file a lawsuit, is a registered Republican.
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