Herman Cain: Mitt Romney’s Mormonism May Be 2012 Barrier

When it comes to faith and religion, Herman Cain makes his personal beliefs known. In fact, the former CEO of Godfather's Pizza is so upfront that he often encounters criticism, if not instant reaction, to his religious commentary. From Islam to Mormonism, Cain has been more than willing to discuss the electoral and policy impacts he believes these faith systems pose.

On Monday, The Blaze reported on the GOP presidential candidate's statement that Americans should be able to ban mosques in their local communities. And, last week, he voiced his opposition to once such mosque in Tennessee. These are only two examples, of course. While many of Cain's highly-publicized comments about faith and religion have focused upon Islam, he decided to take on Mitt Romney's faith in a Washington Times interview published yesterday.

During the interview, TPM reports that Cain "made an issue" of Romney's religion. Cain claimed that he would be the better choice and said that Romney's religion would be a problem with a large segment of the voter base:

I know the South and you have to win the South. Mitt Romney didn't win the South when John McCain won the South and Mike Huckabee won the South. And I think that the reason he will have a difficult time winning the South is when he ran the first time he did not do a good job of communicating his religion.

In Cain's view, Romney's religion teamed with RomneyCare will collectively impede the former Massachusetts governor's chances of securing the nomination. The Times, though, writes that current polls show Romney is faring well in the south:

However, Mr. Romney is polling well in the South, according to the latest round of surveys.

A just-released American Research Group poll in South Carolina, one of the first four states on the official primary calendar, has Mr. Romney leading, with support from 25 percent of the sample of 600 likely Republican primary voters.

Watch Cain's statements on Romney's Mormonism below:

Over the weekend, we reported on Adam Christing's new, controversial documentary, "A Mormon President," which asks: Is America ready for a Mormon president? While Cain says the South isn't, current polling data paint a different picture.

What do you think about Cain's comments about Romney's faith and its potential impact on the 2012 election?