When former Godfather’s Pizza CEO Herman Cain made his presidential bid official Saturday afternoon, thousands of supporters came out to here him speak. On Monday, when former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty formally announced that he is in the race, a mere 200 turned up. Everywhere Cain goes, he wows audiences; a focus group declared him the winner of the first Republican primary debate.

In a Zogby poll released Monday, Herman Cain was the top choice for primary voters at 19 percent, leading New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (16 percent), who isn’t running, and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney (11 percent).

So why is Cain saying that the GOP gives him no respect?

“Even if I were white I’m not going to take fire within the Republican Party until they start to take note of my accomplishments,” Cain told The Wall Street Journal. “It has nothing to do with my color—I just happen to be outside of the establishment.”

In an interview with Fox News, Karl Rove, a former advisor to President George W. Bush, implied that Cain hasn’t done enough to make the American electorate feel confident that he would make a good president. Conservative columnist Charles Krauthammer referred to his campaign as entertainment.

Cain was offended. He told the Journal that if he were running for president for entertainment, “I’d be out playing golf,” adding that “if the mainstream media took me more seriously, that would in turn generate more coverage. But I think that will come in time.”

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