Herman Cain Academically Appraised

, Malcolm A. Kline, Leave a comment

Republican presidential contender Herman Cain may catch more than the Washington establishment by surprise.

“I find it hard to believe that the wheels don’t fall off at some point for him,” University of Georgia political scientist Charles Bullock told Brian Hughes of The Washington Examiner in an article which appeared on October 13, 2011. “The enthusiasm for him is more of a lack of enthusiasm for others.”

“Voters may find that what is in the package is not as attractive as the wrapping.” Actually, Cain appears to be wearing quite well, even with continued exposure.

For example, on October 12, 2011, in an appearance before the New Hampshire House of Representatives, “Cain wowed the multitudes with a gusto that none of the other GOP contenders who spoke — Ron Paul, Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich and Michele Bachmann — could match,” Howard Fineman reported on The Huffington Post. Fineman is hardly a right-wing commentator nor the Huff Po a remotely conservative media outlet.

Bullock, according to Hughes, based his assessment on spending many years watching “Cain unsuccessfully test political waters.” Cain was an unsuccessful Senate candidate in Georgia in 1994. It should be noted that another national political figure, Bill Clinton, also lost a congressional race early in his political career.

Malcolm A. Kline is the Executive Director of Accuracy in Academia.

If you would like to comment on this article, e-mail mal.kline@academia.org