WASHINGTON — Republican presidential contender Herman Cain yesterday ducked questions about whether Mitt Romney’s Mormon faith was a cult — but said religion is a legitimate factor for voters.
“It is a valid concern. But I don’t think it necessarily should be a campaign issue,” Cain said on CNN’s “State of the Union.” Cain, whose long-shot campaign recently gained momentum, tried to brush off questions about the religious beliefs of GOP front-runner Romney.
“I’m not running for theologian-in-chief,” he quipped, before tip-toeing around the Mormon issue.
“What people want to know [is] what are your guiding principles and what are your values, because your guiding principles and your values will impact how you make decisions,” admitted Cain.
The Mormon issue re-emerged Friday when Texas megachurch pastor Robert Jeffress, a supporter of Texas Gov. Rick Perry for president, denounced Romney’s faith as a “cult.”
The Perry campaign almost immediately disavowed the comment.
Cain wasn’t the only GOP presidential candidate to duck the “cult” question yesterday.
Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) told CNN that it was “inconsequential. We have religious tolerance in this country, and we understand that people have different views on their faith and I have a very sincerely held belief on faith,” she said.
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich on CBS’s “Face the Nation” said questioning Romney’s religion was “unwise” and “inappropriate.”