How Cain hangs on: Candidate weathers multiple storms

One would think that anyone running for president with this much negative press would have dropped out by now, due to his donor base going elsewhere, and popular opinion coalescing around another candidate. That has not happened to Herman Cain.

The question is: why not?

The answer: because Republican primary voters who were initially drawn to the straight talking, no nonsense Cain before the allegations surfaced, believe him when he says, emphatically, that the allegations are “flat out not true.”

It also helps Cain that at least two of the women are bound legally, by the terms of those NRA settlements, to remain silent, so it’s hard for voters to get a better sense of what the real story is. The only public allegation, by Sharon Bialek, is strictly a case of “he said, she said.” In other words, Cain has the benefit of shaping the narrative of this story due to the fact that the most credible of the women can’t speak for themselves.

When Cain skyrocketed onto the national stage five months ago, he branded himself as an unconventional candidate who prided himself on not playing by the time tested rules of running for president. In doing so, he endeared himself with many primary voters who were drawn to his different kind of candidacy. In some small ways, it’s the same reason many Democratic primary voters were attracted to Barack Obama in early 2007: the candidate was different. Both candidates looked different than the rest of the candidates; and they spoke differently about how they would solve the problems that faced this country.

In some ways, Republican primary voters are searching for their own rock star and their own Barack Obama, who challenges them to look differently at their own party and their own feelings.

“I like Herman Cain because he’s cool, smooth and talks to me like an adult,” a GOP activist recently told me. “He doesn’t talk down to me like the other [GOP] candidates. That’s why I support him, and that’s why I gave him money.”

This person is not alone.

Gloria Cain recently defended her husband in a television interview by stating, “that he would have to have a split personality to do some of things that he is being accused of.” She went on to say, “I know that’s not the person he is. He totally respects women.”

It’s not surprising that a candidate spouse would come out and defend her husband — we’ve seen this before with Hillary Clinton and other political wives. What is surprising is that Cain’s support among his base is stronger than ever.

This sentiment, along with Cain’s current standing in the polls — he now tops the current field at 18 percent, and with Romney and Gingrich both tied at 15 percent according to the most recent CBS News Poll and he still raising money at a decent clip. His standing in the polls and his fundraising totals defy all political logic. When Cain suggested that his political enemies are after him because of his race and drew comparisons to the “high tech lynching” of Clarence Thomas, his numbers with the GOP faithful grew even more solid.

There’s also another reason why Cain is holding onto his lead: the GOP faithful are not enamored with their other choices.

Most political experts would agree that former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney would be a formidable opponent to President Obama in the general election. With the intensity level among Republicans at record levels in hopes of defeating Obama in 2012, along with Romney’s business acumen and polished debate performances, one would think that Romney’s chances in clinching the nomination would be a slam-dunk. But with the constant shifting of the front-runners, and with Cain’s steady rise to the top, the nomination is totally up for grabs and the party faithful are simply not ready to commit.

But if not Cain who? And if not now, when? And if Cain fades and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich continues to rise to the top, we will likely be having yet another conversation about women, infidelity and the like with the GOP front-running nominee for president.