# Cain has a Clarence Thomas problem **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [October 31, 2011, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cain-has-a-clarence-thomas-problem/601387 "2011-10-31T15:27:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2011, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cain-has-a-clarence-thomas-problem/601387/61 "2011-11-01T18:26:30Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > There’s actually nothing wrong with that. > Right, and before that, he said he didn’t know anything about any settlements only to turn around and say he knew exactly which comments had gotten him sued. You’ll have to forgive me for not taking that statement at face value right away. I don’t know how lawyers handle these kinds of things, but I find it a little surprising that nobody would talk to him about his second sexual harrassment lawsuit. His memory keeps [improving day by day](http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-pn-cain-smear-20111101,0,2233957.story), so that’s good. At least his higher mental functions are not totally impaired. > [@](#): > > “I just started to remember more,” Cain told HLN Tuesday. “In 12 years, a lot of stuff can go through your head.” Yes, I’m always forgetting about the personal lawsuits that I settled with a 5 figure payoff… ---
**Author:** ![Fuzzy\_Dunlop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/848f3c/32.png) [@Fuzzy\_Dunlop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fuzzy_Dunlop)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2011, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cain-has-a-clarence-thomas-problem/601387/62 "2011-11-01T19:13:12Z")
> [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#): > > His memory keeps [improving day by day](http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-pn-cain-smear-20111101,0,2233957.story), so that’s good. At least his higher mental functions are not totally impaired. > > Yes, I’m always forgetting about the personal lawsuits that I settled with a 5 figure payoff… When you forget those things, do you also go around and talk about how you forgot them on national news for 2 days rather than just check into it and remind yourself what happened? Because I know I do that. Seriously, we all forget details of important things sometimes. I was meeting with a banker last week and I couldn’t remember the balance on a loan I owed. But I went home and checked the balance. I didn`t wander around rambling about how I couldn`t remember it ignoring the easy option of reminding myself. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2011, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cain-has-a-clarence-thomas-problem/601387/63 "2011-11-01T19:21:19Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > The NYT is reporting this morning that there were sexual harassment accusations against Cain back in the 90s. He is of course denying it, but nobody is denying that there were payoffs to make the complaints go away. True or not, it could mean the end of his rise. I see what you did there. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2011, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cain-has-a-clarence-thomas-problem/601387/64 "2011-11-01T19:21:30Z")
> [@Fuzzy\_Dunlop](#): > > When you forget those things, do you also go around and talk about how you forgot them on national news for 2 days rather than just check into it and remind yourself what happened? Because I know I do that. Don’t forget that his campaign had days and days to get their story straight before Politico broke the news. Cain is saying he is slowly remembering details because he didn’t have time to think about it. I can’t say I think he’s responding to this like a guilty person because whether you’re innocent or guilty, one of your first impulses is to get your story straight, and Cain is struggling with that. This is why people talk about the virtues of a disciplined campaign. The campaign’s response to this sexual harassment thing, to the absurdly obvious criticisms of the 9-9-9 plan that they should have known were coming, the electrified fence deal, the campaign finance questions - it shows that they’re rookies. Or that he knows he’s not going to be president and just wants to get his face out there. ---
**Author:** ![Bone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bone/32/407_2.png) [@Bone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bone)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2011, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cain-has-a-clarence-thomas-problem/601387/65 "2011-11-01T19:42:01Z")
My company is tiny. We are a virtual pinata of money. You are an employee and threaten us with a lawsuit, we will pay you to go away. It’s absurd how expensive it is to take even frivolous claims to court. 5 figures? That’s nothing. Even if we know we’ll win, we’ll pay because it’s easier. I’ve seen companies who’s standard practice was to have everyone who leave sign a NDA and give them a severance and a promise not to sue. Everyone. Who knows what Cain did or didn’t do. Right now there’s nothing to go on except a rookie political move in not coming out of the gate better. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2011, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cain-has-a-clarence-thomas-problem/601387/66 "2011-11-01T20:10:56Z")
> [@Bone](#): > > My company is tiny. We are a virtual pinata of money. You are an employee and threaten us with a lawsuit, we will pay you to go away. It’s absurd how expensive it is to take even frivolous claims to court. 5 figures? That’s nothing. Even if we know we’ll win, we’ll pay because it’s easier. I’ve seen companies who’s standard practice was to have everyone who leave sign a NDA and give them a severance and a promise not to sue. Everyone. I think that reasonable people are not assuming his guilt here, and know that accusers (including those with poor evidence or with frivolous claims) are often paid to go away. What is in question is his handling of it. As has been said, he should have known that this might very well be coming, and have a pre-planned strategy in place to deal with it. Saying he does not remember, or similarly waffling about it in the past few days does not constitute a plan. > [@Bone](#): > > Who knows what Cain did or didn’t do. Right now there’s nothing to go on except a rookie political move in not coming out of the gate better. I’m not a political animal, but Christ, even I would have known to make a plan for this. This is not a “rookie political move”, it is a total and complete screw-up in how to deal with a matter that should have been routinely planned for. ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2011, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cain-has-a-clarence-thomas-problem/601387/67 "2011-11-01T20:14:30Z")
I couldn’t care less who he harassed–but \*what \*was the deal with Cain suddenly bursting into a chorus of “Amazing Grace” at a press conference? Was he having a psychotic break, or was there some kind of backstory to that which did not get explained? Because that really really \*seriously \*creepy. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2011, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cain-has-a-clarence-thomas-problem/601387/68 "2011-11-01T20:16:55Z")
It started because there’s video of him singing a pizza-themed version of “Imagine,” by John Lennon, and… are you sure you want this explained? ---
**Author:** ![Katriona](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/katriona/32/113_2.png) [@Katriona](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Katriona)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2011, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cain-has-a-clarence-thomas-problem/601387/69 "2011-11-01T20:21:10Z")
> [@Eve](#): > > I couldn’t care less who he harassed–but \*what \*was the deal with Cain suddenly bursting into a chorus of “Amazing Grace” at a press conference? Was he having a psychotic break, or was there some kind of backstory to that which did not get explained? Because that really really \*seriously \*creepy. My only thought was distraction - gotta remind the base what a good Christian he is while the story unfolds. Either that, or “hey, look at the crazy singing guy! Shiny! No sexual harrassment here, no way!” ---
**Author:** ![Buck\_Godot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/buck_godot/32/6573_2.png) [@Buck\_Godot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Buck_Godot)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2011, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cain-has-a-clarence-thomas-problem/601387/70 "2011-11-01T20:21:59Z")
> [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](#): > > Stuff like this I mean: Where did you get from this that I was making a statement one way or another as to the veracity of the claims? I was just commenting on the likely responses of the paleo-conservatives who are part of his base. As with homophobia, there is a wide spectrum as to what people consider to be sexual harassment, with liberals and feminists being more sensitive than men and conservatives. Do you disagree with that? ---
**Author:** ![Capitaine\_Zombie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e95f7d/32.png) [@Capitaine\_Zombie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capitaine_Zombie)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2011, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cain-has-a-clarence-thomas-problem/601387/71 "2011-11-01T20:22:44Z")
> [@Eve](#): > > I couldn’t care less who he harassed–but \*what \*was the deal with Cain suddenly bursting into a chorus of “Amazing Grace” at a press conference? Was he having a psychotic break, or was there some kind of backstory to that which did not get explained? Because that really really \*seriously \*creepy. Could you post a link? The more I learn about Cain, the more he looks like Tracy Jordan/Morgan. ---
**Author:** ![Duke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e8c25b/32.png) [@Duke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2011, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cain-has-a-clarence-thomas-problem/601387/72 "2011-11-01T20:23:23Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > It started because there’s video of him singing a pizza-themed version of “Imagine,” by John Lennon, and… are you sure you want this explained? “Imagine all the pizza, covered in anchovy…eee-heeees…” ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2011, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cain-has-a-clarence-thomas-problem/601387/73 "2011-11-01T20:24:33Z")
Don’t make me come over there. Anyway I don’t think Cain suddenly burst into Amazing Grace. I think he was asked to sing because there’s already video of him singing that pizza song, and unlike people who are trying to be taken seriously as presidential candidates, he actually obliged. ---
**Author:** ![zut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zut/32/2875_2.png) [@zut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zut)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2011, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cain-has-a-clarence-thomas-problem/601387/74 "2011-11-01T20:26:20Z")
> [@Eve](#): > > I couldn’t care less who he harassed–but \*what \*was the deal with Cain suddenly bursting into a chorus of “Amazing Grace” at a press conference? Was he having a psychotic break, or was there some kind of backstory to that which did not get explained? Because that really really \*seriously \*creepy. > [@Marley23](#): > > It started because there’s video of him singing a pizza-themed version of “Imagine,” by John Lennon, and… are you sure you want this explained? Although that’s not untrue, it makes a little more sense when you realize that the hymn Cain was singing wasn’t “Amazing Grace,” but was one called, “He Looked Beyond My Faults.” ---
**Author:** ![Merneith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/57b2e6/32.png) [@Merneith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merneith)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2011, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cain-has-a-clarence-thomas-problem/601387/75 "2011-11-01T21:13:27Z")
Linkage: [http://thehill.com/video/campaign/190769-cain-sings-for-washington-audience-](http://thehill.com/video/campaign/190769-cain-sings-for-washington-audience-) He’s got a good, gospely, voice. Next time, he should try out for America’s Got Talent. ---
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2011, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cain-has-a-clarence-thomas-problem/601387/76 "2011-11-02T00:40:26Z")
> [@Buck\_Godot](#): > > Where did you get from this that I was making a statement one way or another as to the veracity of the claims? > > I was just commenting on the likely responses of the paleo-conservatives who are part of his base. As with homophobia, there is a wide spectrum as to what people consider to be sexual harassment, with liberals and feminists being more sensitive than men and conservatives. Do you disagree with that? No, much of it though is just an excuse by lawyers to sue people and make some money. ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2011, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cain-has-a-clarence-thomas-problem/601387/77 "2011-11-02T00:49:09Z")
> [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](#): > > No, much of it though is just an excuse by lawyers to sue people and make some money. So you have inside info on this situation? ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2011, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cain-has-a-clarence-thomas-problem/601387/78 "2011-11-02T03:11:16Z")
@fivethirtyeight Nate Silver FWIW: Ed Tinsley, the former chair of the Nat’l Restaurant Assn., gave $2,500 to Rick Perry on 8/30. > **[Donor Lookup](https://www.opensecrets.org/donor-lookup/results?name=Tinsley%2C%2BEd&state=&zip=&employ=&cand=&c2012=Y&sort=N&capcode=t82jj&submit=Submit%2Byour%2BDonor%2BQuery)** ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2011, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cain-has-a-clarence-thomas-problem/601387/79 "2011-11-02T04:14:20Z")
[The New York Times is reporting that the second accuser received about $35,000 (around a year’s salary) in return for settling her lawsuit against Cain.](http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/02/us/politics/herman-cain-accuser-got-a-years-salary-in-severance-pay.html?_r=1) Her lawyer is asking that she be released from her confidentiality agreement so she can respond to Cain’s comments. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2011, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cain-has-a-clarence-thomas-problem/601387/80 "2011-11-02T20:01:52Z")
[More stuff trickles out](http://www.ktok.com/cc-common/news/sections/newsarticle.html?feed=119211&article=9339922) with a guy who claims to have witnessed the event… > [@](#): > > Oklahoma political consultant Chris Wilson says if the woman behind the reported sexual harassment complaint against GOP Presidential hopeful Herman Cain is allowed to speak publicly, it’ll be the end of Cain’s run for the White House. > […] > Wilson said for legal reasons, he can not discuss details of the incident. “But if she comes out and talks about it, like I said, it’ll probably be the end of his campaign.” The consultant said Cain is digging himself a deeper hole by challenging the woman. He also believes it has put the Restaurant Association in a position where it will have to release the woman from her confidentialilty agreement. “If she talks about it, I think it’ll be the end of his campaign.” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cain-has-a-clarence-thomas-problem/601387.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cain-has-a-clarence-thomas-problem/601387.md?page=5)