Rep. Clyburn: Cain thought he was 'above' presidential vetting process

Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain saw himself as "above" the presidential vetting process, which is why he was "blindsided" by allegations of sexual harassment, said Rep. James Clyburn (D-S.C.).

"Well, at the risk of sounding as if I've been brainwashed, I feel some sympathy for Herman Cain because I do believe that in some strange way he saw himself above the kind of vetting that takes place in this kind of process, and I think that's what happens to a lot of people who are novices to the political process," Clyburn, the assistant minority leader for the House Democrats, said Monday on "The Bill Press Show."

Clyburn's comments come as Cain, who has jumped to the front of the Republican presidential field, battles reports that he sexually harassed female employees while he was president of the National Restaurant Association in the 1990s. On Monday another woman accusing Cain of harassment — the fourth thus far — will hold a press conference with her attorney Gloria Allred and detail her accusations. 

Clyburn added that Cain probably thought he could just ignore the reports on the allegations and they would go away. 

"I think that he was sort of blindsided by this," Clyburn continued. "I think he thought he could just explain this away or ignore and it'd go away. That may work in the corporate world where he can just pay someone off and somebody will be quiet but you can't do that in this world."

On Sunday, Cain's campaign said it was done answering questions about the allegations. "Don't even go there," Cain said to one reporter trying to ask him a question about the allegations.

---