Block: Cain Is Not Dropping Out

The campaign is re-working their “reassessment”:

Although Herman Cain told his senior staff this morning that he was “reassessing” his campaign’s livelihood in light of an accusation by an Atlanta woman of a 13-year extra-marital affair, Cain’s campaign manager, Mark Block, said in an interview tonight that there is “no way he’s dropping out.”

Block said the term “reassessment” was meant to imply a “strategic reassessment” and “not a reassessment of withdrawing” from the race.

Cain, said Block, will outline the specifics of that strategic reassessment during a campaign stop in Dayton, Ohio tomorrow. In Ohio, Block said, Cain “will lay out his way forward.”

Block added that two things could get Cain out: Mrs. Cain, and if no one shows up at their events.

Meanwhile, Ginger White says Cain flew her around to big events like the infamous Tyson-Holyfield boxing match.

Cain has vehemently denied the affair, which broke Monday, telling the reporters that White was simply a “destitute” friend whom he was trying to help out.

“It’s very disappointing that he would call me troubled and it’s unfortunate,” said White, who said she received gifts and money consistently from Cain in the past two-and-a-half years. Besides the trip to Palm Springs, Calif. White said Cain flew her out to Las Vegas for the Mike Tyson–Evander Holyfield fight.

“I can’t make this stuff up,” said a soft-spoken White, adding the trips and gifts were “not sex for cash.”

“The truth of the matter is when I entered into this inappropriate relationship with Mr. Cain, I was single. I was not married. Mr. Cain has been married through the relationship.”

Unlike the other accusers, there is evidence of communication and at least an admission that he had paid White over the years. There should be more evidence if all this travel took place as she said. Let’s see it.

We’re once again confronted with the possibility — slim, in my view — that Cain is innocent but has so badly bungled his response that he looks guilty. The lawyerly statement at the start of this story gave a strong appearance that Cain is guilty; based on that statement he either is guilty, or that was appallingly bad communication on his part.

Regardless of this story, there are many other reasons Cain would make a poor nominee for the GOP. He thought the Taliban was fighting for control of Libya. He didn’t know about the wet foot-dry foot policy on Cuban refugees. He didn’t understand the “right of return” and he said he would release all the terrorists in Gitmo for one captured American. He can’t give a straight, coherent answer on whether he’s pro-life or not. He said America needs a “leader, not a reader,” whatever that means. And though he says as president he would rely on the knowledge of others to make decisions, on his campaign he retains staff who blunder about contradicting themselves and who may have launched his campaign with illegal money. And, in the face of attacks, the Cain campaign’s first choice was to smear another, innocent, Republican campaign rather than just deal with the allegations in a straightforward way.

Cain led a couple of mid-sized corporations out of trouble, and did well in those roles by all accounts. But whether Ginger White is telling the truth or not (I’m agnostic but suspicious on that), he has not stepped up to show that he has a command of the issues that makes him worthy of the GOP nomination.

See also: Six Questions About the Cain Allegations