Following the now infamous “Smoking” ad in support of Herman Cain unexpectedly going viral – sparking a media frenzy of both admiration and admonition from voters, besides numerous parodies – former Cain Chief of Staff, Mark Block, will release his own sequel at an undisclosed future date.

Meanwhile, another new video was shown to an audience at Marquette University in his home state of Wisconsin; before sitting down for a conversation with award winning journalist Mike Gousha, for his “On the Issues” interview series titled “Tales from the Campaign Trail: Herman Cain’s Chief of Staff goes “On the Issues” at Marquette Law School.”

Video:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pPVFYXxwuhw&feature=youtu.be

The new video starts with a clip of former presidential candidate Herman Cain thanking the University for letting Block tells their campaign’s story, then launching into a montage of scenes from different points throughout the campaign trail. It follows Cain’s announcement, campaigning and press coverage. The video’s climax is Block’s original ad, followed by clips of the fallout. Late night comedy references and media interviews with both the candidate and Block are featured following the ad, culminating in a stylized still image of Block with the bold inscription “Block is America” as if to respond to The Five’s Andrea Tantaros asking “Who’s Mark Block?”

Last week, during one of his numerous cigarette breaks outside of the Marriot Hotel hosting the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington D.C., Block fed rumors of an impending video release.

I joined Block as he spoke informally to a group that included National Review Magazine’s Jim Geraghty. It wasn’t very hard to find Block at CPAC. One only needed to walk out the hotel’s back entry to enter Block’s “office.”

“If the last one was a four, this one will be a nine… point nine nine,” said Block, referring to his upcoming video, as confirmed by Geraghty’s blog. We wonder how many possibilities can be invented with the number nine. Will he smoke nine cigarettes at once; surrounded by nine staffers; shot by nine cameras?

Conception of the original “Smoking” ad was likewise untraditional. Missing his chance to record Cain for an Ad, the cameraman suggested that Block make a short, informal statement after bumping into him outside smoking a cigarette. Block agreed, and the rest is history; giving rise to the saying “Let Block be Block,” when Cain was asked to comment on the controversy surrounding it.

The ad was originally posted on the campaign’s YouTube channel, but quickly went viral, receiving coverage on every news outlet; especially late night comedy shows.  It was a success without the campaign needing to purchase any network ad space.

“It was the best ad ever created for 4 dollars,” said Block.

Block received a flurry of support from smokers and allies who were glad to see such candor from a political campaign, but also, detraction from anti-Smoking groups calling it a bad example for children.

“Of course,” said a nearby media member ironically, “don’t you know how many children out there stay up until 4am watching political coverage and were inspired to smoke?”

The group laughed.

“Yes, maybe I need to be working for Big Tobacco,” chimed Block.

Block promised that his new ad will soon be released without specifying an exact date or time; but that Geraghty may be the first to receive and post it on his blog.

Also Posted at http://www.algemeiner.com/2012/02/16/herman-cains-former-chief-of-staff-releasing-new-smoking/

Dmitriy Shapiro is a political columnist and analyst. He can be contacted at dishapir@gmail.com  Follow him on Twitter: @dmitriyshapiro

First printed at www.algemeiner.com: http://www.algemeiner.com/2012/02/02/donald-trump-endorses-mitt-romney/

Not to be outdone by former candidate Herman Cain’s surprise endorsement of Newt Gingrich leading up to last week’s Florida Primary; corporate magnate and reality television star Donald Trump endorsed former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney on Thursday.

“It’s my honor and real privilege to endorse Mitt Romney,” Trump said in a brief press conference at his Trump Hotel in Las Vegas. He continued. ”Mitt is smart, he’s sharp, and he’s not going to allow bad things to happen to this country.”

Trump said that he endorsed Mitt Romney because of knowledge on how to get people back to work, and his tough stance on international trade with China.

Romney graciously thanked Trump for his support saying, “I’m so honored and pleased to have his endorsement and of course I’m looking for the endorsement of the people of Nevada.”

Last night, rumors swirled around leaks that Trump would endorse Newt Gingrich. The next morning, sources began to confuse the issue by buzzing that Trump would in fact endorse Mitt Romney.

A year ago this month, Trump announced his intention to enter the presidential race to an enthusiastic audience at the American Conservative Union’s 2011 Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Washington D.C.  At the time, conservatives hoped that his tough, uncensored criticism of President Obama’s economic policies, and his success as a businessman would make him a strong contender to win back the White House.

As some expected it didn’t take long for his campaign to resemble a public relations ploy – causing him to lose favorability.

In the early stages of their campaigns, each candidate begged and lined up to meet with “The Donald,” hoping to secure an endorsement which at the time would have provided a jolt to any campaign. Trump chose to tease the media and the candidates by withholding his endorsement after the meetings and continued to feed rumors of a third party presidential bid.

The candidates decided to pay back the honor. When Trump announced his intention to host a presidential candidate debate co-sponsored by the conservative magazine Newsmax and ION TV in Des Moines, I.A., on December 27, 2011 – to help him “decide” which candidate will be best for the country – only Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum accepted the invitation. Jon Huntsman and Ron Paul didn’t hide their feelings about the absurdity of having a former candidate “hosting” a debate.

Ron Paul’s campaign issued the following statement saying, “…we have declined to participate in the ‘Presidential Apprentice’ Debate with The Donald. The Republican Party deserves a serious discussion of the issues so voters can choose a leader they trust to defeat President Obama and turn our economy around.”

Jon Huntsman agreed. Sitting down with Martha McCallum on Fox News Live, Huntsman took a shot at Trump saying, “I’m not going to kiss his ring and I’m not going to kiss any other part of his anatomy… If he had any courage at all, he would be running for President of the United States of America, as opposed to manipulating the process from the outside.”

After Michelle Bachmann, Rick Perry, and Mitt Romney also declined to participate in Trump’s debate, the event was called off.

Much like Cain’s endorsement, the media attention is expected to be substantial, but Trump’s popularity with American voters is at an all-time low. Pollster Michael Barone, in an interview earlier today, said “It’s unlikely that you have many voters standing by to see who Donald Trump is going to support.” In a Fox News poll, only 10% of respondents said that Trump’s endorsement will influence their support, while 27% said that it will make them less likely to support that candidate.

Analysts have noted that the endorsement from Trump could make it easier for Romney’s opponents to paint him as the candidate for the very rich.  It follows the former governor telling CNN’s Soledad O’Brien  that he is not very concerned about the “very poor” in America.

With Sheldon Adelson supporting Newt Gingrich, and Donald Trump supporting Romney, the Las Vegas casino moguls are receiving plenty of press coverage before Saturday’s Nevada Caucus. Steve Wynn has yet to make a definitive statement on the matter.

Dmitriy Shapiro can be reached at dishapir@gmail.com or Follow on Twitter: @dmitriyshapiro

Former candidate and Godfather’s Pizza CEO Herman Cain made a surprise endorsement of candidate Newt Gingrich tonight at the Palm Beach County Republican Executive Committee Lincoln Day Dinner in West Palm Beach, Florida; according to The Shark Tank.

See Video Here.

Cain, who ended his presidential bid among allegations of infidelity on December 3, 2011; has kept up his public profile, keeping voters and pundits guessing as to who he will endorse, and when.

In a recent interview with conservative radio and television host Sean Hannity, Cain hinted that he will be endorsing a candidate soon, though it would come as a surprise and will be “unconventional.”

Meanwhile the Gingrich campaign and dinner organizers also gave the media hints to expect a big surprise endorsement at the dinner.

According to Chris Moody of Yahoo’s The Ticket, Cain told attendees:

“I hereby officially and enthusiastically endorse Newt Gingrich for president of the United States! One of the biggest reasons is the fact that I know that Speaker Gingrich is a patriot, Speaker Gingrich is not afraid of bold ideas and I also know that Speaker Gingrich is running for president and going through this sausage grinder. I know what this sausage grinder is all about.”

Herman Cain left the presidential race after being accused of sexual harassment by numerous women who served under him while head of the National Restaurant Association in the 1990’s. Although, never admitting guilt, Cain was unable to credibly rebut the claims against him, and saw his lead in national polls quickly slip away. He cited the pain that the accusations were causing his wife and family as the main reason for his decision.

Cain appealed to many conservative voters because of his relationship with the Tea Party movement and his successful business career. He saw a surge in the polls primarily because of his innovative 9-9-9 tax plan; resonating with voters because of its simple, fair and innovative structure; besides its easily remembered handle. Mitt Romney, also a businessman, was edged out by Cain – because unlike Romney, who made his money in investment markets – Cain had a “main street” business background that appealed to small business owners having once revitalized the struggling Godfather’s Pizza chain from the ground up.

Significantly, Cain’s rise began in the state of Florida, then spilling over into South Carolina before becoming the national frontrunner. This endorsement comes at a critical time for Gingrich, who is looking to regain momentum after two undistinguished debate performances. Moreover, latest poll results show Romney’s newly acquired offensive strategy against Gingrich is paying off.

With this endorsement, Gingrich can now claim some economic credibility and a chance to absorb supporters whose value of a business experience moved them toward an uneasy support of Romney. Gingrich may also gain the few voters still left who are undecided by the exit of other candidates.

Unfortunately, Cain’s endorsement may have come too late to impact the race as much as he and Gingrich would like. Most Cain supporters had already gone to Gingrich and the other “not-Romneys” anyway. With no more debates left before the Florida primary, Gingrich also finds himself lacking the best medium to trumpet and contextualize this endorsement to the largest audience; moreover, network news coverage will be very limited since most weekend time-slots are already occupied by pre-recorded shows, making them inflexible to breaking news. Whether Gingrich could capitalize on this endorsement with so little time before the primary is uncertain, unless, of course, Monday’s media barrage to follow provides him with the exposure he missed during last week’s debates.

Follow Dmitriy Shapiro on Twitter @dmitriyshapiro

Republican presidential candidate former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum shakes hands during a meet and greet campaign stop in Iowa. | AP Photo

Last night, the Iowa Caucus held on to its reputation as an electoral circus with wildly unpredictable results, while politicos throughout the nation were captivated by its demonstration of rural backwardness bringing ever stranger results.

Until the last percent was counted, all national news networks were delayed in waiting for 2 precincts to report their result. This was done, according to Bret Baier and the Fox News team (later denied by the Iowa GOP) by having some farmer drive them over in his truck to have them counted, instead of just calling them in.

True or not, it seems that when Iowa Farmer Einstein got his truck to his destination, the Iowa GOP couldn’t find the votes. Those 5-20 caucus votes that the nation was waiting for must have gotten lost by rolling under the truck’s seat – or, in his excitement at finally contributing to something important, the driver forgot the votes at the precinct altogether. The frustration on the faces of Bret Baier and Megyn Kelly was unbearable to watch – at least they got some pizza during a break – while CNN’s panelists looked as if they were going to fall asleep. John King didn’t seem to care anymore at one point, and was walking away from the table during the live broadcast. The Iowa caucus was cutting into their bar time and Candy Crowley was hungry. By this time, they should have just brought beer onto the set. It was almost 1am anyway; no children were watching.

But the lesson that should not be missed from Rick Santorum’s impressive display is that old-fashioned stumping, handshaking, and door to door campaigning, is still the most reliable method of winning over voters – well, I cannot say that I am sure that it is the most reliable, it should not be underestimated.

I admit that although I knew Santorum would make a surprise showing, I doubted his methods would have earned him so good of a turnout. It is common in our day to have too much faith in the power of mass media, especially new media. Rick Perry’s $4 million expenditure on ads in Iowa seems to have had no effect.

If you are still skeptical about the power of “face to face” campaigning, I strongly encourage attending a candidate’s event. There is a completely different energy transmitted to an audience in person that does not get through to a TV audience. Even attending a rally of an insignificant candidate, one you don’t even need to agree with, can make the most firm believer reconsider that candidate as an option. This angle was played to perfection by Santorum’s persona in Iowa. His sweater vests contributing to his common man appeal.

I still think that Santorum’s victory will be a singular event. Michele Bachmann’s exit from the GOP race will not mean that all of her voters will jump on Santorum’s bandwagon. Voters still have Newt Gingrich and Perry as viable alternatives. There is hardly a chance for him to pull off a victory in New Hampshire or South Carolina, thus blunting the edge of his Iowa momentum, along with concerns that his funds will not be enough to be effective in the coming primaries – yet, with so many surprises already, nobody can claim any certainty.

Dmitriy Shapiro can be reached at dmitriy_shapiro@hotmail.com

Follow on Twitter: @dmitriyshapiro

The Florida GOP may have lost the battle against South Carolina for which state will be the first primary in the South, but the indecisiveness of Republican voters, not being  able to back one candidate, seems to be making Florida’s “2^nd in the South” primary the final word in the GOP nomination race.

No offense to my home state of South Carolina, but it’s unlikely that the candidate who wins its “1st in the South” primary will undoubtedly go on to win the nomination; making last year’s animosity between these state’s GOP organizations foolish.

Of the three front runners, Mitt Romney’s lead is so statistically insignificant that despite worries about the other candidates’ general unelectability, Iowans seem eager to snub the preference of the rest of the nation. So far, there is no chance any candidate will be able to beat Romney in the New Hampshire Primary, but even if he takes Iowa — winning 2 out of 3 early contests — South Carolina will almost certainly reject him. Newt Ginrich is holding strong in South Carolina and local attitudes are largely anti-Romney. The anti-Romney fervor is the reason Gingrich’s poll numbers haven’t fallen as sharply here as in other states

A Ron Paul win in Iowa will mean absolutely nothing than the characteristic show of hard-headed Iowan mentality, since he has no shot at winning New Hampshire or South Carolina. Ron Paul supporters who will undoubtedly vehemently disagree with me: I look forward to proving you wrong, as always.

Rick Santorum, who nevertheless best matches a typical Iowa winner and is by all appearances a solid conservative, does not stand a chance in New Hampshire and will not have enough time to engineer a lead in South Carolina, since he has so far dedicated all of his campaign resources into Iowa and has no presence in “The Palmetto State.”

Therefore, after the South Carolina Primary, no candidate will have won more than one contest. Romney may win two, but winning just one contest more than any other candidate will not silence Romney haters. Romney’s persona and message does not ring well in the “Deep South” — few “yankee” Republicans do.

Clearly, that leaves Florida, whose voters should consider themselves lucky to have lost the chance to have their primary precede South Carolina’s. It will be the tie breaker.

Florida polls have so far been lock-step with South Carolina, maybe even setting the trends, as seen when Herman Cain’s Florida Straw Poll victory gave him a lead in both states.

Along with its position on the primary calendar, Florida is noteworthy for having a more diverse GOP field that includes not only conservative white Christians like South Carolina, but has a significant number of Conservative Jews and Hispanics. Their GOP is also more diverse in ideology, a better reflection of the national Republican Party.

If South Carolina was the fourth nomination contest, the chance of a candidate other than Mitt Romney winning the nomination would be much higher. The current schedule means that Mitt Romney has a very good chance of locking it in Florida — no matter who wins Iowa or South Carolina — if Gingrich is unsuccessful in turning around his falling poll numbers nationally, but especially in Florida.

Even though it’s amusing to speculate about and watch the Iowa Caucus and the New Hampshire and South Carolina primaries, they won’t matter as much in the general race as their respective GOP establishments would like voters to believe.

Dmitriy Shapiro can be reached at dmitriy_shapiro@hotmail.com or on Twitter @dmitriyshapiro

Despite many of my readers accusations, I am not working for, nor have decided to support one Republican primary candidate over another. GOP candidates have been flying at the electorate like rounds in a revolver, hitting their mark, only to bounce off the Kevlar armor of the overly critical voters that await to see whether the next round out of the barrel will be the piercing shot of conservatism they think they  felt under President Ronald Reagan. I admit there is fault in this analogy. What would Mitt Romney be?

The voters have seen so many rising stars: Tim Pawlenty, Michele Bachmann, Rick Perry, and now Herman Cain, all who seemed unable to withstand the increased media scrutiny that is afforded to the frontrunner.

If Herman Cain is reasonably upset at the media’s scrutiny of sexual harassment allegations, most significant of which coming from the tenacious Gloria Allred’s client Sharon Bailek, who provided graphic details of her alleged encounter with Cain 14 years ago – the first one of four accusers to reveal herself to the public – then he greatly underestimates the inhumanity American politics.

So far, the Cain campaign has handled the situation with embarrassing ineptitude, underscoring his self proclamation  that he is not a politician. Even so, he has sounded incredibly similar to a politician in recent weeks in the way he has been dodging pointed questions from the media until yesterday afternoon’s press conference. Is he now realizing why it takes a politician to be good at politics?

Nobody can claim that they know for certain whether the allegations against Cain are true or not, but there isn’t any question that his campaign will not survive this disaster. Some are already beginning to make him a martyr, claiming that this is usually the way that  media treats prominent black conservatives. But when you have paperwork as evidence of payoffs, some accusing and Cain unequivocally denying, doubts will certainly arise.

Most of the public may agree that these allegations could be false or frivolous, but the uncertainty to the details will no doubt drive supporters away, as evidenced by the latest polls showing Cain quickly losing favorability and his lead among the candidates. Voters do not want a bad feeling in their stomach about their candidate. Furthermore, false accusations levied by Cain Chief-of-Staff Mark Block against former staffer Curt Anderson and former POLITICO reporter Josh Kraushaar, are scuttling gains achieved by Cain’s strong denial of even knowing Bailek.

These allegations, are not Cain’s only problem. Last Saturday’s Lincoln-Douglass debate, between Cain and Speaker Newt Gingrich, exposed a much more troubling problem that politicos everywhere would rather focus on: Cain’s lack of  policy knowledge, the kind that politicians, especially Newt Gingrich, are familiar with. It is doubtless that when Cain agreed to debate Gingrich, he did not consider that he was going to be scrutinized as a frontrunner, believing that little attention would be focused on the debate. Otherwise, it shows hubris to think he can face a seasoned professional and academic like Gingrich. Despite the amicable disposition of the event, viewers saw a clear discrepancy between the two candidates. The enthusiasm the audience payed Gingrich’s answers were not matched for Cain. Cain also asked to pass and let Gingrich go first on two questions that were initially addressed to him, prompting some observers to tweet, “Is that allowed in a debate?” Yes, it was in this amicable debate, nevertheless, Cain’s weakness was exposed.

This is not a good sign for his supporters. Cain needs to further refine his knowledge – even though it is much better than when he began – but will be nearly impossible if he has to handle his harassment scandal. How can a poor debater be pitted against an incumbent with Barack Obama’s eloquence?

Voters may now be forced to make a jump to another candidate in this campaign cycle that many have compared to speed dating. Though some blame “liberal media” for fueling allegations against Cain, he is most likely correct about its origin in Rick Perry’s camp. But if Perry’s staff thinks that Cain’s declining poll numbers will mean that voters will come back to Perry, they have made a serious miscalculation. It is never good to have your candidate appear as the one who purposely smeared  another in your own party.

Until now, the electorate has been picking a new candidate every time they fall out of love with a front runner, I do not see why this will be any different this time around, and it seems that Gingrich has positioned himself to be next out of the barrel.

As hard as I try, I see no reason why Gingrich should not be the frontrunner, or the nominee. It seems that many conservatives are asking themselves the same question, and so far there is no outstanding reason why he shouldn’t be.

Bachmann can already be considered gone from contention. Perry has shown himself to be the weakest candidate intellectually, despite having plenty of campaign cash on hand from when he was the frontrunner. Santorum, Paul, and the others stand no real chance of winning a real caucus or primary. If Gingrich continues to rise in the polls and further shows himself to be the smart and mature candidate – keeping himself well above the bickering among other candidates –  he could soon take the lead among the “Not-Romneys.” Just in time, with Iowa coming in January, Gingrich’s timing could not be more perfect. As comfortable as Mitt Romney’s position is in the polls, I can’t help but feel that his inevitability will encourage the always contrarian and traditional conservative Iowans to reject him in favor of someone with more credible conservative bona fides, having exhausted many other candidates, the currently third place Gingrich would not seem like a bad choice. Especially since Gingrich has received overwhelmingly favorable responses at every event he participated in Iowa.

Gingrich’s private life may not be that clean for a traditional presidential candidate – many voters calling him “undisciplined” – his long career in politics may mean that we may already know everything there is to know in order not to have any Cain-like surprises. Dependability seems to be what Republican voters are craving right about now. His supporters can only hope that his early statements on climate change and calling Paul Ryan’s budget plan “conservative social engineering” will not come back to haunt him.

Follow me on Twitter: @dmitriyshapiro

By Dmitriy Shapiro     Twitter: @dmitriyshapiro     dmitriy_shapiro@hotmail.com

Texas Governor Rick Perry, a star competitor for the Republican nomination, may have recently reached the summit of the favorable poll results he has been receiving, according to Real Clear Politics average.

Political commentators have been widely debating whether Perry’s extraordinary ascent to a significant lead against other GOP hopefuls would continue on its meteoric rise, or begin to decline from media overexposure; now it seems the latter is almost certain.

It is hard to make claims over such results yet. Unless Mitt Romney makes a significant campaign blunder, it is most likely that Perry’s poll numbers will begin to approach those of other candidates as time passes without any candidate dropping from the field.

It isn’t that Gov. Perry is a bad candidate, he is still and will be, the most prominent candidate whose views follow the traditional republican mindset, but his sliding numbers are most likely caused by not meeting the unrealistic expectations of being the perfect candidate, awaited by discontent and divided republican voters before Perry entered the race.

Perry’s performance thus far has been standard; coming off as natural and direct, but not faultless, as demonstrated by the controversy stirred up when he said that Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke “would be treated pretty ugly” in Texas if he continued his inflationary policies. Statements like these may look bad to liberals and in the media, but it does nothing but strengthen his grassroots and Tea Party support.

Perry’s real struggle has been distinguishing himself in the televised debates, where primary voters first get a good glimpse of their slew of candidates. In the two debates that Perry has so far appeared – the MSNBC/Politico Reagan Library and CNN/Tea Party debates – he disappointingly did not come off as the legendary, Chuck Norris-like figure that so many have joked about and hoped for. Dreaming aside, Perry seems unable to find the sweet spot between long-winded political explanations and simplistic sound bites that are not catching on as well as those by his biggest Tea Party rival, Michele Bachmann.

The RCP Average line graph shows that Perry reached his peak on the 12^th of September, polling a double digit lead over Mitt Romney.  Until then, his supporters hoped that he would perform better in that night’s CNN/Tea Party debate, but in the following days, it seems that some of Perry’s supporters have lost hope. As of now, the CBS News/New York Times, USA Today/Gallup, and Rasmussen Reports polls span the interval following the last televised debate, but I would suspect that further poll announcements will show Perry’s lead over the rest of the field, especially Mitt Romney, shrink.

In the CNN/Tea Party debate, Bachmann, Romney and the rest of the field successfully pinned the “big government” Republican label on Perry, which he appeared unable to shake. Bachmann gained sympathy points saying that having “12-year-old girls be forced to have a government injection through an executive order is just wrong…” Bachmann and her campaign quickly capitalized and coined “Perrycare.” Other times, Perry’s unconventional stance on Latino immigration was criticized by all. In the eyes of primary voters, these are serious blemishes on what they hoped would be a perfect conservative record.

Thursday’s Fox New/Google debate will be crucial to the Perry campaign. It will be imperative for Perry to competently deflect all attacks to be expected from Jon Huntsman and Mitt Romney to his left, and Michele Bachmann to his right. He needs to makes certain that the talking points he prepares are clever enough to grab the attention and approval of the primary electorate and media while keeping his renegade conservative image intact. But Perry should also aim for balance. There is a group of conservatives that had hoped for an alternative to Romney, but less socially conservative than Bachmann, this has initially boosted Perry’s numbers, although some seem to be going back to Romney; probably a result of the controversial pronouncement Perry has made on issues like climate change.

Perry campaign’s straddling of the divide between mainstream and Tea Party republicans and drying up funding for slightly more conservative candidates could bring some comfort soon, since it puts him in the best position to receive the supporters of Michele Bachmann, Herman Cain, and Rick Santorum if they run out of funds. Bachmann, being all but invisible in the MSNBC/Politico debate, makes me curious to know where she receives her campaign money from, and how long will it last? Where is Newt Gingrich in all of this? My guess is as good as yours.