While
Republican Candidate Herman Cain may not have been fired, he has suspended his
campaign for the Republican nomination. The title of this post does refer to
the recent announcement from, the once Republican hopeful, Donald Trump. The
reality show star and media mogul is set to moderate a Republican debate in Des
Moines, Iowa. The conservative website, Newsmax is slated to sponsor the debate
that will air on December 27th. Thus far, the only candidate to
confirm an appearance is Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich. Both Representative
Ron Paul and Governor John Huntsman have declined the invitation. The Paul
campaign even issued a statement addressing the decision to choose a television
personality as a moderator, calling it “beneath the office of the presidency”. Candidates like Governor Mitt Romney, Governor
Rick Perry and Representative Michelle Bachmann have yet to respond to the
invite, however the participation of the current front runner Gingrich puts
pressure on the others decision. For
reasons of pure entertainment value, I hope that this debate comes together. As
the first caucus and primary approach, this type of debate will be the icing on
the ridiculousness of the Republican candidacy. It is a shame that Cain will
miss out on such an opportunity.
For the
past few weeks it seems that many of these posts have been focused on Herman Cain.
This is mostly because he has been in the news frequently compared to candidates
like Santorum or Huntsman. He has also been the most exciting candidate to
watch as his controversial rhetoric and questionable behavior towards women sent
him rising and then plummeting in the polls. After all, it is very uncommon to
see a former CEO gain so much momentum in the race for presidential nomination.
His popularity was most likely a result of his smilingly “outsider” status,
despite the fact that he was a lobbyist for the Food and Restaurant Association
for years. Republicans have been desperate for a candidate to shake up the
party and many saw that in Cain. However, recent missteps on foreign policy and
the sexual harassment allegations of up to five women have sent the Cain
campaign on a downward spiral.
The announcement
came from a press conference in Atlanta, Georgia on Saturday in front of a
crowd of Cain supporters. Cain has been in Atlanta in order to discuss with his
family the state of his campaign and whether the heartache suffered by the
family was worth his continuation in the race. In the speech, Cain announced
that he would be suspending the campaign and initializing his Plan B. The
suspension of his campaign allows Cain to continue to accept donations in order
to pay for the campaign up until now as well as finance Plan B; travel across
the country to promote his tax and foreign policy plans. In many ways, this
announcement is not a surprise. Since the POLITICO article was publishes on
October 30th detailing the first two sexual harassment allegation,
Cain has experienced a tough time in the polls. However, the allegations were
not the first factors to hurt the campaign. While Cain’s rhetoric was popular
amongst most Republicans it was also the source of controversy and ultimately
got the candidate in trouble most of the time.
For example, Cain’s suggestion to build an electrified fence along the
Mexican border resulted in great backlash from the public but Cain claimed to
be making a joke. There is also, of course, the famous 9-9-9 plan that Cain has
held onto for dear life despite countless studies by nonpartisan organizations
that prove the plan would raise taxes on the lower class as well as lower the
corporate tax. All of this makes it no surprise that Cain has dropped out of
the race.
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| Governor Mitt Romney |
The larger question is what took so
long? I personally believe that Cain never expected to get this far in the
campaign, that he never thought his catchy tax plan would be open to such
public scrutiny and that he would be questioned on his knowledge of not only
foreign policy like the war in Libya but also democratic process like how an
amendment is passed. Cain is the perfect example of the GOP’s obsession with “outsider”
candidates and their immense opposition to a candidate like Romney. Republicans want to win in 2012 and the odds
are very much in their favor with Obama’s approval rating low in important
battle ground states and the economy not yet recovered. Regardless of this, Republicans still do not
have a candidate they feel to be sufficient to battle Obama.
Mitt Romney is still struggling to
gain support from Republicans as Gingrich is now rising in the polls as a
favorite. Governor Rick Perry hasn’t made the news lately while Representative
Ron Paul trudges on as always. Candidates like Bachmann, Huntsman, and Santorum
should take a hint from Cain as the chances of any of them winning any state
are slim. With Cain gone, the caucus in Iowa has been the focus for Romney and
Paul. Romney has recently aired a television advertisement while his son has
organized rallies in Iowa. Paul has also scheduled two college rallies in the
state.
The suspension of the Cain campaign
can have many consequences. It will be interesting to see which candidate his
supporters will switch to. Also interesting will be the reaction of the other
candidates on the decision. With the race still in full swing the presence of
Cain’s Georgian drawl and complete ignorance to the democratic process and lack
of knowledge on topics like tax reform and foreign policy will no doubt be
missed. Maybe. Probably not.
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