So exactly what is this “sexual harassment,” that Herman Cain is now charged with? How does it differ from what is generally referred to as “making a pass?” How does it differ from “sexual assault?” And how does it differ from what has happened in almost every office on Capitol Hill? From what we know, what is actually being alleged by Cain’s detractors? To better define the terms we need only examine a few brief episodes in the storied life of Bill Clinton.
On April 25, 1978, after speaking before a group of nursing home executives in Little Rock, then-Arkansas Attorney General Clinton gained access to the hotel room of Van Buren nursing home operator Juanita Broaddrick, under the guise of wishing to discuss nursing home issues with her. While there, Clinton insisted on having sexual relations with Ms. Broaddrick, and when she refused he threw her onto the bed and forcibly raped her.
What Clinton did to Ms. Broaddrick was far more than a mere “pass,” and it did not amount to “sexual harassment” because Clinton had no control over his victim or her business. What he did in that particular episode comes under the heading of sexual “assault.” He raped her.
On May 8, 1991, while attending a yet another conference at a Little Rock hotel, then-Governor Clinton spotted a young woman, an Arkansas state employee, working at a registration table in the hotel lobby. Thinking that he’d like to spend some private time with her, he dispatched a member of his state police security detail to invite her to his suite. The young woman, Paula Corbin Jones, could not imagine why the governor wished to see her, but when she entered his suite and the trooper left the two of them alone, she learned why she was there. Clinton unbuckled his belt, dropped his trousers, and demanded that she perform oral sex on him.
That episode cannot be classified as sexual “assault” because he did not physically touch her and his actions far exceeded what might be considered a mere “pass.” However, since she was a state employee and Clinton was at the very top of her chain of command, the episode was clearly a case of sexual “harassment.” She ultimately won an $850,000 judgment against him.
On November 23, 1993, during his first year in office, a White House volunteer named Kathleen Willey made an appointment to see Clinton in the Oval Office. Her husband’s business was failing and she wanted to ask Clinton’s assistance in obtaining a full time paid position. During the interview, Clinton took her to a small kitchen unit off the Oval Office where he proceeded to pin her against a wall, kiss her, and fondle her breasts.
Since Willey was not a government employee the episode could not be classified as sexual“harassment” and it was far more serious than a mere “pass.” The courts would probably have classified it as a “sexual assault.”
Of course, while Herman Cain may have his presidential ambitions sidetracked for allegedly putting his hand, uninvited, on the thigh of a female companion, and while former Senator Bob Packwood (R-OR) was dismissed from the Senate for stealing an occasional kiss, uninvited, from one or two of his female aides, liberals and Democrats continue to revere Clinton as the elder statesman of their party, even though he may be the nation’s most notorious serial rapist, sexual predator, and philanderer.
Humans have been living together in organized societies for more than four million years, yet it still appears surprising to many that males and females of the species will, whenever the mood strike them, pursue each other for purposes of sexual gratification. They do not, however, seem surprised at their own interest in learning every salacious detail of the sexual peccadilloes of others, or, in the case of liberals and Democrats, participating in the “high-tech lynching” of another conservative black man.
A reader in Texas has responded to my recent column titled “Herman Cain Must Be Destroyed.” She suggests, “…the major problem is the tendency to ‘take offense,’ the offense being defined by the recipient of the ‘offense,’ without regard to the intention of the ‘offender’ or the actual harm (in dollar terms) to the recipient. Courts of law can’t evaluate degrees of hurt in ‘hurt feelings’ or degrees of fear in ‘intimidation.’
“For eons men have been the pursuers of women, and this gave women a position of power: to accept or reject. That is how the species evolved. Males who out-pursued others because they were faster, stronger, smarter, or more attractive passed their genes along, while the slower, weaker, dumber, and uglier ones were eliminated from the gene pool, and thus over time civilization occurred.
“There have always been predators… of both sexes. It is human nature, and no amount of legislation will change this. What can the law do? Impose fines? Incarcerate rude people? How about bringing back stocks and pillories and letting the public exact retribution by pelting harassers, taggers, bratty kids, and disrespectful folks of all sorts with rotten eggs or tomatoes?
“Even assuming that Cain ‘harassed’ these women, when does obnoxious behavior become reason to disqualify an otherwise competent person from holding public office? Well… that depends, doesn’t it, on whether the guy is going to promote OUR agenda or THEIRS?!!”
She concludes, “Herman is what we need. A real man, a success, a role model for minority kids and kids from unfortunate circumstances, a true, native-born and raised American.”
She also has a bit of advice for the victims of Cain’s alleged harassment. She says, “Bottom line: You’re a BIG GIRL. Deal with it. If you can’t stand the dog-eat-dog competitiveness of the corporate world, start your own business, marry a guy who will take care of you, get a Sugar Daddy, or just end it all. Don’t expect the world to change to suit you.”
What she suggests is that every man and woman on planet Earth does things to make themselves more attractive to the opposite sex. Some are born with natural beauty, while others of us are not so fortunate; we must resort to artificial means to enhance our attractiveness. Men, as well as women, spend huge sums of money on hairdressers, cosmetics, cosmetic surgery, health club memberships, clothing, etc… all for the purpose of enlarging the number of potential mates. Women, especially, use cosmetics and “show a little skin” in this never-ending game.
So should we be surprised or shocked when our efforts actually bear fruit? And if we should happen to attract the attention of some that we have no interest in, it’s up to us to deal with it as best we can. Girls learn at an early age that they are in control of the “mating dance.” The test for young men is to learn how best to handle rejection… the kind of rejection we feel when we finally work up the courage to ask a girl to dance, only to be rejected with a disdainful, “No, thank you,” and having to walk away amidst the giggles of her girlfriends… our tails tucked between our legs.
In such instances, it has never occurred to me to engage a lawyer to sue for emotional distress.
How many “passes” or sexual “overtures” are made in any given day… some by men, and some by women? In a nation of 320 million people, would we be safe in assuming that, on any given day, at least one person in ten is either the target of or the originator of some form of sexual overture… from a mild flirtation to a Bill Clinton style “assault?” The point is, it is a common occurrence in everyday life and it should not be treated as an Earth-shaking event.
What is so terribly unfortunate about the Herman Cain case is that, to date, only two of the four women in question have had the courage to come forth and state their charges publicly. The others prefer to remain anonymous and continue to hide behind their attorneys. Cain contends that the incidents of harassment alleged by former employees at the National Restaurant Association were investigated by in-house counsel and human resources professionals and were found to be without merit. But were they?
Most of us could go on with our lives, unimpeded, if we never knew another detail of the charges against Cain. However, if the mainstream media insist that he must be disqualified from seeking the presidency if, in fact, he did place his hand on a female companion’s thigh some 14 years ago, then, by all means, let us have all the lurid details so that we can compare his alleged transgressions with our own.
In my own experience, I confess to having known some of the brightest, most beautiful, most fascinating women in the world. They have all been such exceptional beings that I feel totally humbled knowing that they took the time to spend a few hours, a few days, or a few years with the likes of me. But if someone were to ask me to describe, in each case, which of us initiated the relationship, I honestly couldn’t say. It just happened that way; it was a natural thing.
Yes, it is true. When it comes to sexual relations and any other kind of male-female interaction, men are from Mars and women are from Venus… and we should all stop acting as if we’ve just discovered that the Earth is round every time we hear of a sexual confrontation between a man and a woman. Go Herman!