The Target on Herman Cain's back

Emerging from the pack of republican nominee seekers over the past few weeks has been Herman Cain, the former Godfather Pizza CEO who brings a unique style to the race and has captured the attention of many in our nation. Cain, with his 9-9-9 tax plan and his strong performances in each of the GOP debates up to this point, has managed to jump into a close second, passing Rick Perry and currently sitting close to Mitt Romney. Although Cain, as shown by Gallup, is only the sixth most recognizable of the GOP candidates, he has captured the interest of many who have discovered him, and finds himself in an unfamiliar situation going into tonight's debate: he is now the target. Whereas Cain previously went into each of the debates as a middle of the pack candidate whom most had small expectations for, he now goes into tonight's debate as the one everybody wants to know more about. He can expect his answers to be scrutinized more fully, his opponents to question his reasoning and views more in-depth, and his journey for the nomination to get a whole lot tougher as a result. Herman Cain remains largely unknown right now, and finds himself at an absolutely pivotal point in his campaign--people are trying to discover more about him. Will he impress and continue to increase his following, or will his inexperience on issues such as foreign policy scare people away? Will he do enough to remove people's doubts that an individual with virtually no political experience can handle the white house? These and others are certainly viable questions, and I would argue that the way Cain responds to these questions over the next few weeks will be crucial in determining the final course of his campaign.

Sources: Gallup, Washington Post.