Herman Cain's Florida Straw Poll Upset was an Orchestrated Move to Show Republicans What Can Happen If They Don't Vote

Third tier candidate & Tea Party darling Herman Cain's Florida straw poll upset of Rick Perry & Mitt Romney an orchestrated move by Tea Party to show Republicans what can happen if they don't go out to vote -- another black candidate for the White House.

Herman Cain shouldn't take a victory lap or even misconstrue the real meaning behind his upset of Rick Perry and Mitt Romney in the Florida straw poll. You see, the Tea Party is a shrewd bunch of people and they made a point with Cain's win -- if you don't vote, you could get another black man running the country. How Herman Cain pulled this off is beyond me. There are no Herman Cain sound bytes floating around out there. This is the same man who was content to sing Negro spirituals in Iowa. He is a third-tier candidate in the race for the GOP presidential nomination, so there had to be more to his "win" in Florida Saturday night. Besides, straw polls are rather meaningless, so I wouldn't put any stock into them. How many times has Rep. Ron Paul won? I rest my case.

It's clear that many people don't care much for Rick Perry or Mitt Romney. The Republicans have been unable to galvanize behind one candidate. This is one of the worst slates I have seen in a long time. They are all damaged goods. Perry will never live down his position that Social Security is a Ponzi scheme, as well as the controversy surrounding his decision to force girls to get the HPV vaccine. He's weak and vacillating, at best. Mitt Romney is no better. He has flip-flopped on many issues. In my view, Jon Huntsman, the Republican version of Obama, might be the candidate with all his ducks in a row. He has a record of accomplishment as governor of Utah. He has been unable to elevate himself from a second or third tier position.

Back to Herman Cain. Sarah Palin said she likes him a lot. Um, those are code words to run like the dickens because he will be just as crazy as Rep. Allen West, another Tea Party darling she endorsed. Herman Cain ran a pizza company. That doesn't equate to becoming the next president of the U.S. I am reminded of a similar manipulation of the polls by Republicans. A few years ago, then-Rep. Cynthia McKinney was handed a defeat during the primary after a number of Republicans went out and voted for her opponent, Denise Majette, in 2002. Never mind the fact that Ms. McKinney had groveled to a Saudi prince for money he offered to NY City Mayor Rudy Giuliani in the aftermath of 9/11. She made a lot of enemies in Congress, including former president George W. Bush, but what happened at the polls in metro Atlanta is a stark reminder of the power of voters. The Republicans knew there was no way Denise Majette would have beaten their candidate, but Cynthia McKinney had become toxic and they wanted her gone. Well, Herman Cain shouldn't celebrate this victory. They are reminding voters of what can happen if they don't go out to vote.