Cain recalls sexual harassment 'agreement

Republican U.S. presidential hopeful Herman Cain says he recalls details of an "agreement" in a sexual-harassment case against him but says it was "minimal."Cain was also asked Monday about alleged improper financial arrangements between a charity and his campaign.The former pizza company executive leading, national and state polls for the GOP presidential nomination, told "PBS NewsHour" Monday he recalled a financial "agreement" with a woman who accused him of inappropriate behavior during his 1996-99 tenure as National Restaurant Association president. Hours before, Cain said he was "unaware" of any sexual-harassment "settlement."He explained the distinction the PBS News program."I was aware that an agreement was reached," he said. "The word 'settlement' versus the word 'agreement,' you know, I'm not sure what they called it. I know that there was some sort of agreement, but because it ended up being minimal, they didn't have to bring it to me."My general counsel and the head of human resources had the authority to resolve this thing," he said. "So it wasn't one of those things where it got above a certain authority level and I had to sign it. If I did -- and I don't think I did -- I don't even remember signing it because it was minimal in terms of what the agreement was."Program host Judy Woodruff said PBS News was told the settlement was "five figures."Later, in an interview with the Fox News Channel program "On the Record," Cain elaborated further, saying the restaurant association "ended up settling for what would have been a termination settlement" with a female employee who complained about Cain's behavior. He said it amounted to "maybe three months' salary."The allegations against Cain were first reported Sunday night by Politico, which detailed separate incidents between Cain and two women on the association staff that led to paid separation packages. It said the incidents included "conversations allegedly filled with innuendo or personal questions of a sexually suggestive nature."The restaurant association declined to comment on what it termed "personnel matters that allegedly took place nearly 15 years ago," The New York Times reported.Cain began the day Monday saying he never sexually harassed anyone and knew nothing about financial settlements. By the afternoon, he told the National Press Club in Washington the allegations had been made but said the restaurant association's review found them to have "no basis."He called the accusations against him "a witch hunt."When asked by "PBS NewsHour" if he ever displayed any behavior he thought might have been inappropriate, he said: "In my opinion, no. But as you would imagine, it's in the eye of the person who thinks that maybe I crossed the line."And when asked if any woman who accused him had been asked to meet him in a hotel room, he said: "That I absolutely do not recall. You know, I have no recollection of that."Concerning the alleged improper financial arrangements between a charity and his campaign, The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported Monday the Cain campaign may have accepted tens of thousands of dollars in goods and services from a tax-exempt organization founded by Cain Chief of Staff Mark Block in apparent violation of campaign finance laws.Documents obtained by the newspaper suggest the group, Prosperity USA, paid nearly $15,000 for an "Atlanta invoice," about $17,000 for chartered flight service and $5,000 for Cain's travel expenses to Iowa, Las Vegas, Houston, Dallas and Louisiana.The documents indicate Prosperity paid $3,700 for iPad tablet computers purchased Jan. 4, the newspaper said.The documents' authenticity was verified by two people close to the firm, the newspaper said.Federal election and campaign laws prohibit tax-exempt groups from engaging in political activity or contributing to election campaigns.Cain campaign officials had no immediate comment on the report. Prosperity USA now appears defunct, the Journal Sentinel said.