Herman Cain desiste

Herman Cain, 65 anos, chegou a liderar a corrida republicana, mas não resistiu às acusações de infidelidade e assédio sexual - e atirou a toalha ao chão.

Afro-americano, homem de negócios, não tem passado político (nunca foi eleito), mas somou pontos com um plano fiscal simples e atractivo para a base conservadora.

Foi o fenómeno do mês de Outubro, mas não sobreviveu aos ataques que apareceram por estar à frente. A questão que agora se coloca é: quem agarrará o seu discurso populista?

Com Rick Perry e Michele Bachamann pelas ruas da amargura, e Ron Paul forte no Iowa mas sem capacidade nos grandes estados, a questão, na nomeação republicana, deverá residir entre Mitt Romney e Newt Gingrich.


Faltam 30 dias para o caucus do Iowa

Texto de Kyle Adams, no Real Clear Politics:

«Hobbled by accusations of sexual harassment and infidelity, Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain announced Saturday that he is suspending his campaign.

Appearing at the opening of a new campaign office in DeKalb County, Ga., Cain praised his supporters, lambasted the media and touted the success of his campaign before announcing that because "false and unproved" accusations had taken a "painful" toll on his family, he was suspending his campaign.

However, he vowed to continue making the case for his policies, including the 9-9-9 tax plan ("It's not going away," he said), and announced the launch of a new website, TheCainSolutions.com. He also said he would make an endorsement in the GOP race "in the near future."

After walking off his campaign bus with his wife, Gloria, he opened his speech by thanking supporters and discussing his motivation for running for office before announcing the end of his campaign.

"I am suspending my presidential campaign because of the continued distraction, the continued hurt caused on me and my family, not because we are not fighters, not because I'm not a fighter," he said. "It's just that when I went through this reassessment of the impact on my family first, the impact on you, my supporters -- your support has been unwavering and undying -- as well as the impact on the ability to continue to raise the necessary funds to be competitive, we had to come to this conclusion."

Politico reported on Oct. 31 that two women accused Cain of inappropriate behavior during his time as the head of the National Restaurant Association. In early November, another woman, Sharon Bialek, publicly accused Cain of sexual harassment. Cain has maintained that he never harassed anyone.

This week, an Atlanta woman, Ginger White, came forward and said that she had a 13-year affair with the businessman. Cain has admitted to giving her money but denies the affair.

After surging into first place in several national polls in late October and early November, Cain has seen his support erode over the past few weeks. A Rasmussen Reports poll released Thursday showed him with only 8 percent support.

His support in Iowa has plunged as well. He has dropped to 8 percent in the latest Des Moines Register Iowa poll, down from 23 percent in late October.»