Titled “Now is the time for action!” the 56-second spot, which doesn’t seem designed to air as a paid television ad, features Mark Block, who is Cain’s campaign manager, offering a series of broad platitudes about how “Herman will put ‘united’ back in ‘United States of America’” and how “together we can take our country back.” 
 
 The decision to use Block, who seems slightly uncomfortable in front of the camera and whose name and face are unrecognizable to virtually every Republican primary voter, is curious, but what makes the video so bizarre is what happens when he finishes speaking: With an aggressive soundtrack rising in the background, Block raises a cigarette to his mouth, takes a drag, and puffs out a cloud of smoke. Certainly, this is how Cain’s campaign is trying to spin it, telling NBC News last night that they’re pleased with the attention it’s receiving.
– Herman Cain's new campaign video is generating lots of attention, but not because of 9-9-9 or 9-0-9 or anything remotely related to policy. It's all about a cigarette: The video (it's in the gallery at left) features chief of staff Mark Block praising his boss for about half a minute. Then the camera moves in for a slow close-up of Block smoking a cigarette and exhaling, which fades into a profile of Cain. All in all, it's "one of the most bizarre 5- (to) 10- second chunks of film in some time," writes Frances Martel at Mediaite. What gives? At Salon, Steve Kornacki suggests it might be Cain's defiant response to a New York Times article that noted he buddied up to the tobacco industry when he led the National Restaurant Association. (But if Cain is actually serious about winning the nomination, it's a "baffling" video, adds Kornacki. Read his full post.) One thing is clear, however: "Block is the newest YouTube star of the 2012 presidential campaign," writes Alexander Burns at Politico. He's even got a fake Twitter site now. And real Mark Block isn't a fan. Click for more theories on why the cigarette shot was included.