bennett's client. the statement goes on to say based upon the information currently available, we can confirm that more than a decade ago in july 1999 mr. bennett's client filed a formal internal complaint in accordance with the association's existing policies prohibiting discrimination and harassment. mr. herman cain disputed the allegations in the complaint. the association and mr. bennett's client subsequently entered into an agreement to resolve the matter without any admission of liability. mr. cain was not a party to that agreement. the agreement contains mutual confidentiality obligations. notwithstanding the association's ongoing policy of maintaining the privacy of all personnel matters, we have advised mr. bennett that we are willing to waive the confidentiality of this matter and per montana mr. bennett's client to comment. as indicated in mr. bennett's statement, his client prefers not to be further involved with this matter and we will respect her decision. the association has robust polic

bennett. one of the source of contention from mr. cain saying she signed a severance agreement, terminated employment, in his view, that agreement had little or nothing to do with sexual harassment. mr. bennett begs to differ. >> a severance agreement is when someone's leaving employment and there's an agreement to pay the person a certain number of months of salary for whatever reason. it could be just because the person is leaving that's very common in companies that are having economic problems that have severance policies, unrelated to any misconduct or performance issues. this was a settlement of an internal complaint of sexual harassment. it was not a severance agreement. >> a clear difference of opinion, mr. bennett, jeffrey, wanted to make that point. does it matter? >> i don't think any of this matters much at all. i think today was a very good day for herman cain. i think these announcements amount to very little. and in a way are unfair to herman cain. how is he supposed to defend himself? there are still no specifics. sti

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he is missing out because we are hanging out with tony bennett today. his first number one hit came 60 years ago. and he is still making them today thanks to duets like lady gaga and amy winehouse and we will talk him about all of that and also about a charity very near and dear to his heart. >>> also ahead, we have some great food for your friday. husk recently named the best restaurant in the country. farm-fresh ingredients there. the chef sean brock will tell us how he is trying to return southern food to its roots. >>> we continue our american spirit series with a inspiring story of a st. louis judge who would rather see kids behind desks in schools than behind bars in jail. >> russ mitchell reports now on the program that has had remarkable success where a city where kids don't often get a second chance. >> reporter: this is the juvenile court of judge jimmie edwar edwards. >> you can't be in a gang with me. you can't smoke dope with me. we will work that out. >> reporter: he has wisdom to kids accused of crimes. too on which, it's too late. >> whe

bennett's client has remained anonymous. but in an interview published within the past hour, she has been publicly identified as karen kraushaar, a 55-year-old woman who works at the treasury department. now, she was accuser "a," who worked in the communications department of the restaurant association. she filed her complaint in 1999 and reportedly received $45,000 settlement. mr. bennett, thank you for being with me tonight. we'll talk about your client in a moment. but, first, herman cain said about these accusations "they simply did not happen." what is your reaction to mr. cain saying that what has been reported about your client just didn't happen? >> my client filed a detailed, written complaint in 1999, specifying multiple incidents of sexual harassment over multiple days. the incidents happened and my client stands by the written complaint that she filed. >> mr. bennett, can you -- are you at liberty to tell us the nature of these sexual harassment series of sexual harassment complaints what they are comprised of? >

he's missing out, because we're hanging out with tony bennett. his first number one hit came 60 years ago and he's still making them today, thanks to duets with singers like lady gaga, amy winehouse and talk about his charity very near and dear to his heart. >>> and also great food for your friday, husk recently named the best new restaurant in the country. farm-fresh ingredients prepared without too much fuss, the results are just incredible. the chef will give us his take on how he's trying to return a southern food to its roots. >>> first the inspiring story of a st. louis judge who would rather see kids behind desks in school, than behind bars. >> a program he's created which has remarkable success in a city where kids don't often get a second chance. >> good morning, everyone. >> this is the juvenile court of judge jimmy edwards. >> you can't be in a gang with me. you can't smoke dope with me. biehl work that out. >> direct and passionate, edwards doles out wisdom to kids accused of crimes. too often, it's too late. >> when i get ready to lo

bennett, this is david gergen. "the washington post" and "the new york times," they say they that she wants an opportunity to have her side told and you just said she's still mulling and not sure what she is mulling. >> naturally, she's been very upset about this since the story broke last sunday because mr. cain has been giving the impression she came out and made false allegations. that's certainly not true and she's still deciding, once we hear from the restaurant association, what she'll do if they'll waive the confidentiality. until they do that, she's not going to speak out. >> was she released? did she leave the national restaurant association because she made the allegations? was the separation based on this or did they accuse her or say she was not a good employee for other grounds? what was the basis on which she left? >> to the best of my recollection, there were no complaints about her performance. she was ready to move on to another position in light of the way she had been treated by mr. cain, with th

bennett, this is david. they say they that she wants an opportunity to have her side told and you just said she's still mulling and not sure what she is mulling. >> naturally, she's been very upset about this since the story broke last sunday because mr. cain has been giving the impression she came out and made false allegations that's certainly not true and she's still deciding once we hear from the restaurant association what she'll do if they'll waive the confidentiality. until they do that, she's not going to speak out. >> was she released? did she leave the national restaurant association because she made the allegations? was the separation based on this or did they accuse her or say she was not a good employee for other grounds? what was the basis on which she left? >> to the best of my recollection, there were no complaints about her performance. she was ready to move on to another position in light of the way she had been treated by mr. cain. with the confidentiality settlement agreement. >> mr. benn

bennett. we look forward to focusing our attention on the real issues like fixing the broken economy and putting americans back to work through the 9-9-9 plan as well as strengthening national security. clearly they want to move on. joining us now chief political analyst gloria borger and jeffrey tubin. you said previously you thought herman cain's accuser would speak out or the details would come out. >> i think i was wrong. that's -- i just think this is over. i think at least as far as this woman is concerned understandably she doesn't want to get involved in a circus or make herself a target which she would be if she got specific. but in fairness to herman cain if that's all she is going to say through her lawyer, i don't think he's obligated to respond. there are no specifics. there's no name. i just think that is not a concrete enough accusation to force him to continue this story any further. >> gloria, do you agree this is done? >> yeah. well, it depends if more comes out. i think at t

. >> reporter: attorney joel bennett says his client was telling the truth when she accused herman cain of sexual harassment when she worked for him 12 years ago. >> mr. cain knows the specific incidents that were alleged. my client filed a written complaint in 1999 against him specifically and it had very specific incidents in it. and if he chooses to not remember or not acknowledge those, that's his issue. >> reporter: but bennett said the woman, who he said is a government employee married for 26 years, would not reveal details of what happened to protect her privacy. >> we're not going to get more specific about what was physical, what was verbal. it was... it call phid as sexual harassment in our opinion. >> reporter: bennett would not specify how many times the alleged incidented happened but says they occurred over at least a month's time. >> more than one. we're not going to get more specific than that. we resolved the case at an early level. it never got to that point where i could evaluate it as a case for litigation. >> reporter: another woman also has accused cain of harassm

and if he chooses to not remember or not acknowledge those, that's his issue. >> reporter: but bennett said the woman, who he said is a government employee married for 26 years, would not reveal details of what happened to protect her privacy. >> we're not going to get more specific about what was physical, what was verbal. it was... it call phid as sexual harassment in our opinion. >> reporter: bennett would not specify how many times the alleged incidented happened but says they occurred over at least a month's time. >> more than one. we're not going to get more specific than that. we resolved the case at an early level. it never got to that point where i could evaluate it as a case for litigation. >> reporter: another woman also has accused cain of harassment when he led the national restaurant association in the 1990s. cain has denied he ever harassed anyone and said the revelations were a calculated smear campaign. cain said he recalled one complaint that led to a separation agreement. >> it was concluded after a thorough investigation that it had no basis. >> reporter: in a state

and if he chooses to not remember or not acknowledge those, that's his issue. >> reporter: but bennett said the woman, who he said is a government employee married for 26 years, would not reveal details of what happened to protect her privacy. >> we're not going to get more specific about what was physical, what was verbal. it was... it qualified as sexual harassment in our opinion. >> reporter: bennett would not specify how many times the alleged incidents happened, but says they occurred over at least a month's time. >> more than one. we're not going to get more specific than that. we resolved the case at an early level. it never got to that point where i could evaluate it as a case for litigation. >> reporter: another woman also has accused cain of harassment when he led the national restaurant association in the 1990s. cain has denied he ever harassed anyone and said the revelations were a calculated smear campaign. cain said he recalled one complaint that led to a separation agreement. >> it was concluded after a thorough investigation that it had no basis. >> reporter: in a state

bennett, let's get to the bottom of this because your client has now come out in public. why? >> she's come out in public because her name was revealed by the media, and she's decided, since her name is in the media now, that she wants to get the details of her complaint out since mr. cain is still denying any sexual harassment or impropriety. >> herman cain says about your client that the only thing he can recall in terms of any complaint made was telling her that he was the same -- that she was the same size as his wife. is that accurate? is that the full extent of the alleged harassment? >> it certainly is not. my client is a very intelligent, well educated woman. she would never file a complaint about an innocent remark like that. my client is 5'2". she's not the same height as mr. cain's wife. and the incidents that were reported to the national restaurant association were multiple, over multiple days. >> i suppose the obvious question -- and i put this to sharon bialek last night, another accuser -- is that given the passage of time, being over a decade, how is anyone go

bennett. >> you're welcome, lawrence. >> mr. bennett, have you had any contact with sharon bialek? >> i had contact with a woman named sharon in chicago the last five days. i don't know if it's the same sharon because i never got her last name. the sharon i had contact with left a voicemail in my office one night indicating she had been harassed by herman cain while he was with the national restaurant association. when i called her back the next day, she said she had decided not to pursue it further. i then called her again yesterday to advise her that she could give her information confidentially if she wanted to. she said she'd think about it and let me know. i have not heard from her since then. it may be the same woman who spoke out today. >> so you did have conversations with her on the phone only with the first name sharon and you heard her voice in this press conference today. does it sound like the same person? >> i really couldn't tell, lawrence. i'm sorry. >> okay. what do you think what miss bialek revealed today, how do you think it fits in the story as we currently kno

bennett, let's get to the bottom of this because your client has now come out in public. why? >> she's come out in public because her name was revealed by the media, and she's decided, since her name is in the media now, that she wants to get the details of her complaint out since mr. cain is still denying any sexual harassment or impropriety. >> herman cain says about your client that the only thing he can recall in terms of any complaint made was telling her that he was the same -- that she was the same size as his wife. is that accurate? is that the full extent of the alleged harassment? >> it certainly is not. >> herman cain says about your client that the only thing he can recall in terms of any complaint made was telling her that he was the same -- that she was the same size as his wife. is that accurate? is that the full extent of the alleged harassment? >> it certainly is not. my client is a very intelligent, well educated woman. she would never file a complaint about an innocent remark like that. my client is 5'2". she's not the same height as mr. cain's wife. and the

bennett. we look forward to focusing our attention on the real issues like fixing the broken economy and putting americans back to work through the 9-9-9 plan as well as strengthening national security. clearly they want to move on. joining us now chief political analyst gloria borger and jeffrey tubin. you said previously you thought herman cain's accuser would speak out or the details would come out. >> i think i was wrong. that's -- i just think this is over. i think at least as far as this woman is concerned understandably she doesn't want to get involved in a circus or make herself a target which she would be if she got specific. but in fairness to herman cain if that's all she is going to say through her lawyer, i don't think he's obligated to respond. there are no specifics. there's no name. i just think that is not a concrete enough accusation to force him to continue this story any further. >> gloria, do you agree this is done? >> yeah. well, it depends if more comes out. i think at t

we know she and tony bennett had have a good friendship, they collaborated on a song and video for bennett's album. if you watched her thanksgiving special on abc, you learn something very surprising, tony bennett has seen lady ga-ga naked. explain. >> with some of the costumes she wears, i kind of feel like i've seen lady ga-ga naked. basically she stripped down so that bennett could sketch her, this is for a "vanity fair" shoot when the magazine comes out next year. it was photographer annie liebovitz's idea. if it sounds creepy to you, just keep in mind it's all art, darling, it's all art. >> all right, thank you very much, as that image, get it out of your mind. >> remember the pepper spraying cop caught on camera. he's being ridiculed all over the web for the video of him dousing a line of protesters sitting on the ground. jeanne moos will give us a look at a unique pepper spray incident herd around the world. stay with us. nationwide insurance, talk to me. should i bundle all my policies with nationwide insurance ? watch this. on one hand, you have your home insurance with one company.

lawyer joel bennett went public with his client's version of events, confirmed that she filed a sexual harassment complaint against cain in 1999 while he was ceo of the national restaurant association citing several incidents. >> she made a complaint in good faith about a series of inappropriate behaviors and unwanted advances from the ceo. >> reporter: bennett also confirmed that she received a financial settlement. what about cain's denials? >> mr. cain knows the specific incidents that were alleged. my client filed a written complaint in 1999 against him specifically and it had very specific incidents in it. if he chooses to not remember or not acknowledge those, that's his issue. >> reporter: the cain campaign's response? we look forward to focusing our attention on the real issues impacting this country. bennett's client, now a spokesperson for a federal agency in washington, chose not to reveal details of the incidents. sources involved with the restaurant group at the time tell nbc that cain's inappropriate behavior was directed at young staffers and usually involved drinking. t

bennett says there is a nondisparagement agreement in the deal. deborah kelly says if cain spoke negatively about the woman's work performance in public, he might have broken that part of the agreement. cain has vehemently denied breaking that deal. >> because that agreement was between the national restaurant association and this woman and cain was the head of the association at the time, so automatically, he was part of that confidentiality agreement. thanks very much. for a brief moment, the controversy seemed to get the better of herman cain as the candidate showed a flash of irritation. jim acosta was on the scene for us as he often is. he's joining us live. walk us through what happened here. >> wolf, we certainly saw a change in the public face of herman cain. gone was the casual, easy going style that reporters are accustomed to mr. cain demonstrating and in its place was a much more confrontational style. he refused to answer reporters' questions in virginia this morning and i tried to get him to answer the question would he call on the n

bennett in

bennett's client says repeated sexual harassment. when you heard sharon bialek, that's an unwanted sexual advance. that legally be sexual harassment? >> it is hard to know. there is the issue of mr. miss bialek as i understand it, was not still an employee of the restaurant association when it happened. so there are all sorts of legal issues that if this were to be a case, which it is clearly not. she has no interest in filing limitation has long run, i think you are talking semantics here. the issue is did herman cain do something that's really appalling. i think if you believe her, if you believe ms. bialek, the answer is yes. if you believe herman cain, the answer is no. >> appreciate your insight tonight. when we come back, jeff noted that the political arena, the political impact on the man who is the surprise of the gop race including some brand new poll numbers just outside suggesting these allegations are beginning to take a toll. [ indistinct talking on radio ] [ tires screech ] [ crying ] [ applause ] [ laughs ] [ tires scr

lawyer joel bennett went public with his client's version of events, confirmed that she filed a sexual harassment complaint against cain in 1999 while he was ceo of the national restaurant association citing several incidents. >> she made a complaint in good faith about a series of inappropriate behaviors and unwanted advances from the ceo. >> reporter: bennett also confirmed that she received a financial settlement. what about cain's denials? >> mr. cain knows the specific incidents that were alleged. my client filed a written complaint in 1999 against him specifically and it had very specific incidents in it. if he chooses to not remember or not acknowledge those, that's his issue. >> reporter: the cain campaign's response? we look forward to focusing our attention on the real issues impacting this country. bennett's client, now a spokesperson for a federal agency in washington, chose not to reveal details of the incidents. sources involved with the restaurant group at the time tell nbc the cain's inappropriate behavior was directed at young staffers and usually involved drinking. th

call the bennetts has tried to look at closer at least the size leading to that same libyan scenario after its pivotal role in it overthrew. britain's become the new growing when there's trouble in the middle east prime minister david cameron's hand picked his team captain for another libya style control. group aimed at forcing president bashar al assad out to begin with it will be a diplomatic offensive to russia appease it's an overreaction that could pave the way for military intervention. we suggested in order to put the arab initiative in place all countries concerned with a peaceful outcome of developments from syria's should demand not only from the syrian authorities but also from the opposition to stop the violence the ongoing attacks on government buildings in syria look like a civil war. at the moment there's no mention of military action from britain their offensive is purely verbal for now but that's exactly how the libyan intervention began and the timing is very similar to the opposition in syria is now militarized making it much easier to support and adds more weight