"The thing most Republicans find appealing about him is that he's bubbly, funny, and good-natured. He's a cancer survivor who seems like he's always looking on the bright side."

I don't think people like Cain because he's bubbly and fun. I think they like him because he's plain-spoken and straight-forward and cut-the-bullshit and simplistic. There's a powerful line of thought in the Republican Party that our problems are simple, really, if we'd just return to basics, tighten our belts, cut taxes, cut spending, cut everything. As if the United States wasn't anymore complicated than a pizza restaurant or dry cleaners. That's the appeal of 9-9-9 -- it's easy to figure out. Eliminates all that damn paperwork.

The fact that these ideas have no foothold in reality is not important to them, and they get really, really angry when you point it out. I don't think Angry Cain is going to hurt him that much.

What's going to hurt him is the total oblivious off-handed stupidity of his positions, not just 9-9-9 but stuff like "Uzh-becka-becka-becka-becka-stan-stan". He's not a serious person, and that's going to hurt him outside his core supporters. Eventually.

Me, I really hope they nominate the guy.

Nah, Fnarf, people don't like angry politicians. Fringe types from both wings do, but they tend to scare everyone in between.

@2

You could have left that at "simplistic."

You cannot underestimate the stupidity and or laziness of the average American.

They want to believe there is some down-home-spun gall-darned common sense solution to our economic problems. One that doen't require opening a book and doing hard math. Somehow involving blaming Mexicans, Muslims, or gays is best.

Because then they don't have to do anything. Those other people do.

Notice when ever a politician mentions the populace itself might have to do something hard to fix problems that's when they get the boot.

9-9-9 is just stupid shit, but so is all the newer idiocy from DC. Convince most Americans that stupid shit pulled from Cain's stupid ass is any worse than current reality or proposal.

@5

Start here?: http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/10…

On the other hand, if Cain gets angry and goes negative, and the voters DON'T flee in horror, maybe it'll be a sign to Obama that he can pull off the angry black man, and he'll go all Harry Truman on the republicans.

@2,

It would definitely be a darling follow-up to McCain's choice of Palin as a running mate. Like all the women who supported Hillary needed was a vagina on the Republican ticket to ditch the Democrats. Conservatives are going to be real disappointed when they find out that picking a black candidate won't immediately win them the White House.

@3 Um, you have noticed that most of the GOP field is running for President of the Tea Party, haven't you?

@10 - At this point, most of the GOP field is running for Vice President.

But then, I supposed that's really just another way of saying "President of the Tea Party."

His name is Cain, his 9-9-9 tax plan is 666 upside down, he's black like Obama... CAN'T YOU SEE HERMAN CAIN IS THE ANTI-CHRIST?????????????

There's no way Cain can get angry. He's black, and thus outside the corresponding white privilege.

Here's an exercise: think of every professional black man you know, e.g. lawyers, doctors, engineers, etc. Now count how many of them are known to have a temper. Think that's a coincidence?

This is the tea party wing who cheers for people who croak because they didn't have insurance, boo a gay soldier, proudly proclaim their ignorance of science and want complete freedom from regulation of any sort for business but to fully control women. They all suck. Well, at least Rick Santorum. I'm pretty sure he does.

14, what about Clarence Thomas and his "high tech lynching" speech? He was pretty angry there.

Of course, he really hasn't done anything since then.....

But I am happy to lump Cain in with Palin. Both amiable idiots who took advantage of situations and then sold out to corporate conservatism and invoke Jeebus to give them a veneer of respectability.

As far as Godfather's Pizza goes, it was a dog under Pillsbury and got worse when they gave it to Cain as his golden parachute. I hope someone explores that story.

Unfortunately Clarence Thomas has done something since then, a lot of things, like participating in awful court decisions. He's still angry and he's on the Supreme Court. That's about as bad as you can get.

Well, he does what he's told, I'll grant you that. But so does my Pomerainian. most of the time.

Thomas doesn't do what he's told; that's essentially claiming that he doesn't have a brain. Unfortunately, he does, and it's way more rightwing than Scalia, and that's saying a lot.

@17-20: CT is one of the few black men in America who can get angry, seeing as he cannot be fired or promoted. Cain is running for national office. Their need to maintain their public personas could not be further apart.

And yeah, CT does have a brain; it's just not as sophisticated as, say, Thurgood Marshall's was. Black conservatives are generally not that bright; if they were, they wouldn't be conservative.