What Cain remembers doing — standing close to a woman, commenting on her physical stature and comparing her to his wife — probably crosses the line for some people. Wives and their husbands are intimate together and co-workers generally don’t want to be considered in terms of a spouse. Physical proximity is also fraught with potential tension. Some women wouldn’t blink at such a comment; others could feel it was the wrong remark in the wrong place.

I asked Cain how he defines sexual harassment and he listed offenses that would resonate with most Americans: forcing a female to do something against her will; inappropriate touching; making inappropriate comments in the presence of a female.

Parker continues by noting that, while Cain is of an older generation that might view sexual harassment differently, he’s running for an office where that probably doesn’t matter. “When you’re running for president of the United States, you’d better know the difference,” she writes. “Today, Cain surely does. But over a decades-long career as an executive, Cain said he never gave his behavior a second thought.”