Herman Cain Faces Potential Campaign Finance, Tax Law Violations

Cain Faces Campaign Finance Controversy

On Monday, Herman Cain faced a media frenzy surrounding a set of sexual harassment allegations. Lingering on the political periphery, however, is a potential controversy involving corporate donations.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel's Daniel Bice has obtained information suggesting that a private Wisconsin-based company footed tens of thousands of dollars to help get Cain's campaign going. Two key aides led Prosperity USA, which allegedly helped finance chartered flights, iPads and other travel expenses.

If the report proves to be true, Cain's camp may have violated federal campaign finance and tax laws. An election law expert saw the suspicions as troubling for the GOP candidate.

"If the records accurately reflect what occurred, this is way out of bounds," an unidentified Washington, D.C.-based election lawyer who works with conservatives told the Journal Sentinel.

When asked about the report on Monday, Cain was unable to address the allegations.

"I'm not aware of this report, so my staff has not had time to go through it," he said in an interview with Fox News. "I'm not aware of it. They're not aware of it. We are going to look at the report and see if there is any validity."

Cain's weekend, by contrast, began with plenty of cheer. A key 2012 poll released by the Des Moines Register pitted him as a co-leader with Mitt Romney for the GOP presidential nomination.

That euphoria grew sour Sunday evening when Politico unveiled a report suggesting that Cain had sexually harassed women during his time as leader of the National Restaurant Association. Cain denied any wrongdoing, telling Fox News that he has "never sexually harassed anyone."

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