Cain and Unable: Bed-Stuy Weighs in on Herman Cain's Departure from the Presidential Race

Herman Cain announced Saturday that he is suspending his campaign bid for president.

For a few hours, many were confused. Did “suspend” mean he was taking a temporary break? Later it was confirmed: Herman Cain was dropping out of the race.

Only one month ago, Cain was riding high in the polls. But it all began to fray at the edges when, on October 30, two women stepped forward to complain of his “sexually suggestive behavior” during his tenure as the head of the National Restaurant Association in the mid-90s.

That was followed by three more allegations over the next three weeks—two from women who accused Cain of sexual harassment, and a third who admitted to a 13-year affair.

Following the fifth woman, Cain decided it was time to stick a fork in it: His campaign was cooked.

BSP asked Bed-Stuy residents, How do you feel about Herman Cain’s decision to drop out? Does the news come as a disappointment or a sigh of relief?

Some residents indeed expressed disappointment, while for another, the GOP candidate couldn't drop out soon enough. But most residents who were asked said they weren't surprised-- given the building scandals, they saw it coming.

“I’m not really happy he’s dropping out, because I wanted to hear more from him and see how far he would go,” said Keith Sutton, 64. “But he was lying, and everyone knew it.”

Marcus Hicks, who was eating with a friend at Tiny Cup Café, said he was not surprised to hear Cain had dropped out, because “he had too many skeletons in his closet.”

Many others shared that same opinion.

“It was unrealistic that he would have had a chance,” said Regine Pigler, 39, a Bed-Stuy resident from Switzerland. “I can’t vote yet, so I don’t have any emotional attachment to this whole race… but if I could, I would definitely vote for Obama to win again.”

“With everything that came out this week, he should have dropped out,” said Gabrielle, who was sitting with a friend outside of Colador Café. “I think he never should have run in the first place. If you have a bad past – whether you’re a Republican or Democrat – you shouldn’t be running, because all of that always comes out.”

“I can usually separate dirty laundry from dirty politics,” said Gabrielle’s friend Lauren Lewis, 27. “But I don’t’ support the Republican Party, so I wouldn’t have voted for him anyway.”

One Bed-Stuy resident expressed great releif over Cain's decision.

“I’m happy that Herman Cain dropped out of the race, because he was never a serious candidate. His ideas proved he wasn’t a serious candidate,” said Antoinette Scurry, 43, on her way home from church. “He had almost no knowledge of international affairs and barely understood the legislative process. He was a handkerchief-head, foot-shuffling Uncle Tom who was an embarrassment to black people.”

But 45-year-old Bed-Stuy resident Jeff Cadle, who was sitting on the steps outside of his home, said he thinks Cain would have been a good candidate if he had stuck it through.

“He was a good speaker, and he seemed like a smart guy. But he must have figured that it would have been too high of a ladder to climb and that it wouldn’t be about politics anymore; his campaign would be about all the mistakes he made,” said Cadle. “But I think the Republicans knew they had to dig up some stuff quick to get rid of him once they realized, 'Wait! We can’t have one black man replace another.’”

Desmond Graham, 28, said that he did not know a lot about Cain nor his platform, but that if he’s quitting his campaign, then probably there was some truth to the allegations. Graham also expressed disappointment with the lack of morality amongst some U.S. politicians:

“It’s just sad that a lot of people who want to represent the general public, do so, and then you come to find out that internally, they have more problems than you do. What does that say about their ability to make decisions for us?”