海角大神

At the front of the GOP presidential pack, former Godfather鈥檚 Pizza CEO Herman Cain is having his moment in the political sun. Which also means he鈥檚 going under the journalistic microscope. This morning鈥檚 papers are packed with pieces on Cain.

To help you keep up with the media鈥檚 continued vetting of Cain, here鈥檚 a review of the top pieces from this weekend and Monday:

1. Herman Cain鈥檚 appearance on NBC鈥檚 鈥�Meet The Press鈥� Sunday.

Two bits of news emerged from this interview. First, as , Cain said his applause line at a recent rally - about installing a fence along the Mexican border with electric barbed wire capable of killing those trying to enter the US illegally - was a 鈥渏oke鈥� and that America 鈥渘eeds to get a sense of humor.鈥�

Second, Cain acknowledged that under his 鈥�999 plan.鈥� Which Americans, specifically? According to Cain: 鈥淭he people who spend more money on new goods.鈥�

2. Herman Cain and the Koch Brothers

The , Charles and David Koch, finding:

Cain鈥檚 campaign manager and a number of aides have worked for Americans for Prosperity, or AFP, the advocacy group founded with support from [the Kochs], which lobbies for lower taxes and less government regulation and spending. Cain credits a businessman who served on an AFP advisory board with helping devise his 鈥�9-9-9鈥� plan to rewrite the nation鈥檚 tax code. And his years of speaking at AFP events have given the businessman and radio host a network of loyal grassroots fans.

3. The history of 鈥�999鈥�

The Wall Street Journal鈥檚 Neil King, Jr. ,鈥� finding Cain and economic advisor Rich Lowrie sought - and received - a blessing from conservative tax guru Arthur Laffer. Laffer, 鈥渙ften viewed as the father of supply-side economics,鈥� reportedly signed 999 with a red A+.

In practice, Mr. Lowrie鈥檚 design combines two ideas that have figured prominently in conservative tax debates in recent years. One idea is a flat tax (Mr. Laffer for years has championed this idea). The other is a national sales tax.

Admirers see it as a breath of fresh air in what is often a stultifying debate over how to rewrite the mammoth U.S. tax code. Many conservative economists have praised the Cain approach鈥檚 shift to taxing consumption while encouraging savings and investment. But some business people鈥攑articularly retailers but also home builders鈥攃ringe at the prospect of a national sales tax. And liberals worry it would raise taxes on lower-income people, or deepen the current deficits, or maybe both.

4. Is Herman Cain a serious contender?

Two pieces dig into whether Cain, who has only recently rocketed up to top-tier status, has the desire and/or ability to start building the kind of team necessary to compete with the serious organizations of Mitt Romney and Rick Perry.

Neil King, Jr. of the :

Now, under increasing scrutiny, [Cain] needs to hone his message, rapidly build a campaign organization to capture the swell and, perhaps most importantly in the eyes of national GOP operatives, give himself over to the discipline of a national campaign鈥�.

Cain aides say they are hiring campaign staff at a breakneck pace, looking to nearly double the payroll to about 60 by the end of the month. They opened a South Carolina headquarters 10 days ago and are bulking up operations in Iowa and New Hampshire, where Mr. Cain has shot up in the polls.

The Washington Post鈥檚 by looking at Cain鈥檚 current lack of such an organization:

As presidential contender Herman Cain launched a bus tour across Tennessee this weekend, his advisers couldn鈥檛 explain why he would spend precious time in a state that is far down the list of crucial primaries.

Moments away from an appearance at a diner in Concord, N.H., Cain鈥檚 people didn鈥檛 know the name or address of the place.

And Cain鈥檚 organization is so thin in key early states that one New Hampshire strategist said that when activists have asked where to learn more about the candidate, there was no one in the state to refer them to.

Still, Cain is drawing massive crowds and - so far, at least - the more traditional trappings haven鈥檛 paid off much for Perry or Romney.

鈥泪蹿 Facebook could be used to topple the Egyptian government, then perhaps Herman Cain can use it to win Iowa,鈥� said Phil Musser, a Republican strategist who most recently worked for the short-lived presidential bid of former Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty. 鈥淭hus far, the traditional approach to running for president in 2012 has paid few dividends, and the old must-dos have proven to be less important milestones than expected.鈥�

5. Lobbying against stricter drunk driving regulations?

As head of the National Restaurant Association, Cain lobbied against a national law imposing a .08 percent blood alcohol content (BAC) limit for a driving under the influence charge, :

鈥淭he problem is not the responsible drinker,鈥� Cain wrote in one letter to the editor.鈥� It is the alcohol-abuser who gets behind the wheel of a car. In fact, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, two-thirds of all alcohol-related fatalities are caused by drivers with a BAC of 0.15 or higher.鈥�

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