Cain To Make Major Announcement On Saturday On Future Of His Presidential Campaign
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Will he stay in the race or will he quit?
Scandal-plagued presidential candidate Herman Cain is set to make a major announcement about the future of his campaign, reports CBS 2's Marcia Kramer.
Allegations of sexual harassment and now claims of a 13-year extra-marital affair have torpedoed Cain's standing in the polls. His decision to be revealed Saturday on whether to fold his political tent will depend on whether his wife of 43 years, Gloria, decides to stand by her man.
"I am reassessing because of all this media firestorm stuff. Why? Because my wife and family come first. I gotta take that into consideration," Cain said.
Cain adopted a scorched earth policy after several women came forward with accusations of inappropriate sexual behavior. He abruptly canceled an important event with New York City's media elite that was scheduled for Tuesday, the day before President Barack Obama was in town.
"I have never acted inappropriately with anyone," Cain said back on Nov. 29.
However, Atlanta businesswoman Ginger White's assertion that she had a 13-year affair with the former Godfather's Pizza boss, has taken some of the yeast out of his dough -- and possibly some of the dough out of his campaign war chest.
"We've gotta look at what happens to contributions and we gotta look at what … we gotta re-evaluate the whole strategy," Cain said.
Cain was to meet Friday with his wife for the first time since White came forward and it's clear that whatever announcement he makes will depend and her.
Until late Friday it seemed like he was still in the hunt. The campaign announced the creation of "Women for Cain" headed by Gloria Cain, and Herman Cain planned to open an Atlanta headquarters Saturday. In fact, that's where he'll "clarify" his plans.
"Tomorrow in Atlanta I will be making an announcement, but nobody's gonna get me to make that prematurely. That's all there is to that," Cain said.
And with his popularity in the polls plummeting with each new revelation, CBS News Chief Washington Correspondent Bob Schieffer offered the following thoughts about his political viability:
"I just don't see how he gets going after this. I don't see how he's going to raise and money. I mean, it would seem to me he's going to have a very difficult time. I've been wrong before, but I don't see a path for him to get the Republican nomination right now. To be blunt, I think he's done. Cain's wife has said she would not be one of those women who stands by her husband's side if the allegations are true," Schieffer said.
So, we'll all just have to wait until Saturday to see what happens.
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