Republican presidential candidate Jon Huntsman continues to focus his campaign efforts on courting New Hampshire voters this week, brushing aside the Herman Cain sex scandal as “the latest bimbo eruption.” Huntsman implied that the Georgia Republican’s checkered past is becoming a distraction to the Republican presidential field.
“We’ve got real issues to talk about not the latest bimbo eruption,” Huntsman said in an interview with the Boston Herald Tuesday.
Huntsman made the remark Tuesday following Ginger White’s Monday interview with Atlanta based FOX 5 claiming to have been involved in a 13 year extramarital affair with Cain. The former Utah governor also suggested that Cain should consider dropping out of the race.
Cain told his campaign staff Tuesday that he is “reassessing” his campaign amid the latest allegations from White, although a Cain staffer told POLITICO Tuesday that the former Godfather’s Pizza executive will remain in the race.
Regardless, Huntsman believes the constant media attention to Cain’s accusers is taking away from the candidates abilities to focus on the “real issues.”
“What about a (financial) downgrade that is being anticipated? What about Europe? What about so many other issues out there that we ought to be talking about and that people ought to understand where candidates come down on those issues?,” Huntsman said in a statement to the Boston Globe Monday.
“Given the bandwidth that has been taken out of the discussion of any other issues pertinent to this campaign, a reconsideration might be in order,” Huntsman added.
The former U.S. Ambassador to China has risen slightly in the latest polls of New Hampshire voters, as Cain continues to slide among Republican voters after trailing front runner Mitt Romney through October and early November.
“Every time another accusation comes up, it diminishes our ability to stay focused on the issues that really do matter for the American people. And I think that’s a disservice to the voters,” Huntsman said.
Cain has not publicly commented on Huntsman’s suggestion that he drop out the race, but his staff posted a statement to the Georgia businessman’s campaign website Monday regarding White’s alleged 13 year affair.
