Posted on 10/29/2011 10:00:12 AM PDT by freespirited
While Herman Cain's viral Web ad — in which chief of staff Mark Block pointedly takes a drag from a cigarette after extolling the presidential candidate's virtues — might have raised eyebrows among political strategists and heckles in Internet comment sections, the ad seems to have also raised the rate at which the insurgent campaign is bringing in fundraising dollars.
Cain has brought in nearly $2 million within the last week alone, nearly doubling his weekly returns earlier this month, his campaign told The Wall Street Journal. By contrast, Cain only brought in $2.8 million over the entire third quarter.
"Our donations online have shot up a lot since that ad,” Block told the Journal. “The money we are getting is wildly beyond our expectations."
Cain's campaign has argued that the ad was a manifestation of a nontraditional, down-to-earth style that has caught the Republican zeitgeist. The polls seem to echo that analysis, with Cain leading Mitt Romney 24 percent to 20 in a Fox News survey released earlier this week.
The candidate said earlier this week that the ad "did a great job" and represented his grassroots message.
"We have a saying in my campaign — let Herman be Herman. This is the attitude that I have when I do debates. This is the attitude I have when I do interviews: Let Herman be Herman. Mark Block is my chief of staff. And we also say, 'Let Mark be Mark,' " Cain said on Fox News. "Mark happens to be a smoker. He knows it's a bad habit, but he smokes. And so we weren't trying to send any subliminal message whatsoever. Many of us found it hilarious, because we know Mark Block."
Block said the ad enforced the idea of Cain as a "different kind of presidential candidate."
“Yes, the smoking part of that ad was controversial — and I don’t in any way condone smoking — but the message that Herman Cain is a different kind of presidential candidate is certainly resonating across the country,” Block said.
30 years ago I could smoke while welding and huffing all those oxides and argon.
25 years ago they said the ciggies bothered other workers and they made me stand outside.
15 years ago they said your standing to close to the door and they made me stand 50 feet away in the rain.
10 years ago some ass hat said he could smell it from there and they sent me to the edge of the road.
7 years ago some azzhole said he didnt like that and smoking was driving our healthcare premiums up so they banned smoking in my own truck in the parking lot (Premiums went up regardless)
Now I put in an extra hour a day to cover smoke breaks that I take on a dirt road in the woods, far from the nazis.
In the past year, I have seen a bunch of chuckleheads back in the woods on their cellphones.
I expect next year one of them will call the cops to tell them I am smoking in the pristine woodland.
LOL
Lol. I soon expect us all to be arrested! If I’m outside smoking a butt in front, I do have people (usually elders) saying “what are you doing, that will kill you”....in a very kind, joking way.
My reply is “heck, nowadays everything can kill you”. As they are getting into their cars I will say, “careful, driving can kill you too!”.
They get a good chuckle out of that one, lol.
One thing is certain.
Life eventually leads to death LoL
LMAO.....so true!
Actually life is terminal.
No one gets out alive. So enjoy your smokes!
I’m enjoying one now while cleaning a gun.(no lie)
Then I’m gonna make some hamburgers with onions and green chilis and watch football.
I’m doomed LoL
Oh, I do. But now I have an icky smokers cough, which is embarrassing!
I’ve replaced the brakes,tires, a wheel bearing, ignition coils and have had to constantly clean the inside due to the smell. After a year it is drivable.
Minus the smoking, I would agree.
and wonders who in the world would take a Presidential candidate seriously after seeing it.
Makes sense, from her point of view. And.... point of view is everything, my FRiends.
Btw, Thanks for responding earlier.
One question. Has your wife seen any other Cain ads?
Btw, Thanks for responding earlier.
One question. Has your wife seen any other Cain ads?
oops.
Humans are an interesting species.
oops.
“and yet we FEEL it...”
(know where my mind is at!)
"Driving a 3000-6000 pound mass of metal and plastic, at 60-70 miles per hour... a speed so fast our brain has to be 'hypnotized' and re-render what the eyes see.."
That's more dangerous than smoking!
When my Aunt (in law) quit after 40+ years of smoking (she actually rolled her own cigs as a teen during WWII) she had to NOT talk to family and friend on the phone for about a month. She said it was weird because the phone would ring, she’d sit on her chair to talk and automatically reach out for the ashtray/cigarettes/lighter (that had always been placed in that location). It was simply a trained response. Unfortunately, you can’t just stop driving. I am wondering if an E-Cig may help you. From what I have read, it looks like a cigarette, and you puff on it. It isn’t the same, of course, but you could still “smoke” something (or close) while driving.
No, she just happened to catch this on a news program I was watching. She won’t even think about voting til the day before the primary, much less watch any political advertising, which is typical for most of the people I know. Usual she just hears politics when I’m listening to them and the only thing she goes on is what she hears, not sees. Given that, she’ll probably vote for Gingrich, as she is familiar with him (I’ve been following him for years) and she thinks he is the most intelligent politicians of recent years.
I have those! Unfortunately, they are so heavy I have to use 3 fingers to hold them up!
I wish they’d come out with a lighter one, one I can hold like a cigarette.
I had absolutely NO IDEA they were that big. Three fingers? Must be like a E-Cigar. Now... why in the world couldn’t they design one to actually be the length/thickness of a real cigarette? That makes no sense to me at all.
It sounds as though you are getting a lot of good ideas and maybe inspiration. I hope if you decide to quit that you can do it successfully! I did even tho’ it was not so many years, for sure I stuffed at least 20 years of smoking into those years... Sometimes I smoked 3 packs a day! And lots of unfiltered.
Your lungs and heart and brain and tastes buds will thank you!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.