UPDATE: The Cain campaign has now canceled its interview with the New Hampshire Union Leader because of a disagreement over timing, according to AP reporter Steve Peoples.
Union Leader publisher Joe McQuaid offered a terse response to Cain's cancellation: "It's his loss."
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NEW YORK -- If Herman Cain stumbles on a foreign policy question during Thursday’s scheduled meeting with the influential New Hampshire Union Leader -- as he did earlier this week when asked about President Obama's handling of Libya -- don't expect to see the clip on an endless cable news loop.
That's because Cain's campaign has requested that the sit-down not be videotaped. And now, a scheduling matter puts the entire 10 a.m. interview in jeopardy.
Union Leader publisher Joe McQuaid told The Huffington Post that "no reason was given" for the no-camera request and he "was a bit surprised" by it. So far, Mitt Romney, Rick Perry and Rick Santorum have all met with the Union Leader and allowed C-SPAN to tape the newspaper interviews for broadcast.
When asked about the request, Cain spokesman J.D. Gordon told The Huffington Post that "video cameras are optional at Ed Boards and we decided not to pursue that option." Gordon added that "the interview is at a newspaper, not a TV station."
McQuaid agreed to the campaign's request, but there's another issue complicating the scheduled sit-down. McQuaid said that the interview was originally scheduled to last one hour, but the Cain campaign recently changed it to just 20 minutes. He said that's not an acceptable amount of time. (The Cain campaign hasn't yet responded to an inquiry about the interview length.)
The Union Leader endorsement is highly sought after in the New Hampshire Republican primary. However, McQuaid pointed out that it is not decided by a traditional editorial board.
"We do not have an 'editorial board,' '' he said. "Isn't that some sort of committee whose members frown seriously, puff on pipes and then come up with editorials with all the punch of a flat Coke? I and my editorial writer and a reporter meet with candidates and ask them questions which are then reported to our readers and help inform our opinions."
