‘How many of you think Herman Cain won the debate?”
Twenty hands shot up.
“Well, we can stop right there,” said Frank Luntz, a fast-talking political consultant, as he paced before a Fox News focus group on May 5. “This is unprecedented.”
Luntz pointed to the top row, looking for answers. One by one, South Carolina Republicans in trucker caps and business suits raved about Cain. After watching the 65-year-old spar with fellow GOP presidential contenders, many were itching to join his ranks.
“He’s a breath of fresh air,” explained one gentleman. “He is the godfather of business sense, and he can attack Obama well,” declared a middle-aged lady. Others nodded vigorously.
Luntz was stunned. “[Cain] was not a real candidate before tonight,” he exclaimed. “What happened?”
Cain chuckles about the bewildered Beltway response to his star turn. “You never know what to expect with these sorts of things,” he says. “You never know if the perception is going to be ‘everybody was the same,’ i.e. mediocre, or somebody is going to say something that creates some separation.”
Cain, a former corporate executive and talk-radio host, did more than that; he won over a slew of Republicans pining for a 2012 candidate. Though he was standing among better-known Republicans such as Tim Pawlenty and Ron Paul, Cain’s rich baritone, business smarts, and sharp one-liners connected.
Read more on the home page. Later in the article, I write about Cain’s Hillarycare heroics:
I had the pleasure of seeing him speak once in person. While having him as president would be great, I'd almost rather see him as the VP nominee where his job would be to attack Obama/Biden. He really reaches the average voter that Obama looks down his nose at.
Like Clinton, I don't understand Cain's numbers either. If 1/3 of your work force receives healthcare, and that healthcare cost makes up 2.5% of your total expenses, how does covering everyone (not even everyone as Clinton points out, because some part time employees wouldn't be entitled to coverage from Cain's business) make his expenses 16%?
I'm sure the "nuances" of the Hillarycare plan created a lot of expenses not factored into Clinton's equation, but this exchange illustrates the problem republican's are going to have in tackling the deficit and our budget. It is too easy to fudge the numbers and confuse people in a debate and most people aren't savvy enough accountants or interested enough in doing the math to tell who is being honest.
This is what makes me fear more and more that the only way people will be willing to take on the debt is when it is right on top of us and unavoidable. I'm afraid we may not get on top of this until we end up in Greece's shoes, which will be utterly devastating.
Also, unbelievable that we have come to this point in America, where an American citizen employing other citizens, all working together to serve their own interests and those of their customers, must appeal to a political leader in this way - as like subject and king - to avoid bearing excessive burden.
Let's build the moat aroind BIG government statists and let's BE the alligators!
I am glad to see NRO finally paying attention to Herman Cain (in a positive way and seeing him as a viable candidate). Now that he is finally getting some traction, the long knives will also be coming out (not from NRO probably, but other so called Republicans will start getting upset their plans are being disrupted). So be it. I suspect Herman is ready for that too. I like Herman Cain a lot and hope he does well. Mr. Cain is the type of candidate the GOP needs.
Of the declared candidates and probable candidates, Mr. Cain is my favorite. Only worrisome issue is he was a former head of a branch of the Fed. Since I'd like to abolish the Fed or at least move to a gold standard, I would like to know his position on monetary policy.
I just found a longer version of the same video, without the edits. I'm a HUGE fan of Herman Cain, and like others here I'm very excited to see him getting some traction finally. Let your friends know about him.
A cross-section of SOUTH CAROLINA REPUBLICANS overwhelmingly say black gentleman and hero of the Tea Party won the debate over a bunch of white gentlemen.
And the MSM is silent. It doesn't fit their filter. Southerners are racist; Republicans are racist, Tea Party members are racist.
I mentioned this inconvenient fact in another thread last week, but it looks like it bears repeating:
The American voting public will not elect anyone President who's never served in elective office. The last person to have done just that was Dwight D. Eisenhower. Now, if you want to compare the credentials of the Supreme Allied Commander of WWII with a pizza magnate and radio talk show host, have at it. But I suggest that folks stop deluding themselves and others into believing that Cain has any shot at all. He doesn't.
Looking into the details of Clintoncare some more. The maximum percent of payroll an employer would be required to pay was 7.9%. Any healthcare costs after that would be subsidized by the government. So Clinton was correct in his calculations.There was no way Clintoncare would have caused Cain's healthcare costs to increase to 16% of his payroll costs.That doesn't mean Clinton's plan made sense. Just that Cain didn't really know what he was talking about.
I also agree with the point about putting someone in there with no political experience who has held no elective office. I don't see that working out. I also think going to the gold standard is a terrible idea, even if it were possible to do at this point, which it isn't. We wouldn't be in a position to go back to the gold standard for another 50 years given our current outstanding debt and our current gold reserves. It's silly to even talk about it.
What strikes me the most about this actually is Clinton's reaction. . . how much better a politician he is than Obama. Obama would have gotten preachy and started pushing over his straw men. Bill Clinton has a sheen of imperturbability that the thin skinned Barack Obama tries to fake.
I'm going to have to go with Mr. Cain's numbers on this one. It was his business he was talking about; I'm sure he'd already run the numbers. In fact, he probably ran them himself, seeing as how he has a degree in mathematics and worked as a mathematician for the Department of the Navy.
I had the pleasure of seeing him speak once in person. While having him as president would be great, I'd almost rather see him as the VP nominee where his job would be to attack Obama/Biden. He really reaches the average voter that Obama looks down his nose at.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseLike Clinton, I don't understand Cain's numbers either. If 1/3 of your work force receives healthcare, and that healthcare cost makes up 2.5% of your total expenses, how does covering everyone (not even everyone as Clinton points out, because some part time employees wouldn't be entitled to coverage from Cain's business) make his expenses 16%?
I'm sure the "nuances" of the Hillarycare plan created a lot of expenses not factored into Clinton's equation, but this exchange illustrates the problem republican's are going to have in tackling the deficit and our budget. It is too easy to fudge the numbers and confuse people in a debate and most people aren't savvy enough accountants or interested enough in doing the math to tell who is being honest.
This is what makes me fear more and more that the only way people will be willing to take on the debt is when it is right on top of us and unavoidable. I'm afraid we may not get on top of this until we end up in Greece's shoes, which will be utterly devastating.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseVery impressive.
Also, unbelievable that we have come to this point in America, where an American citizen employing other citizens, all working together to serve their own interests and those of their customers, must appeal to a political leader in this way - as like subject and king - to avoid bearing excessive burden.
Let's build the moat aroind BIG government statists and let's BE the alligators!
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseFor those people who are convinced we need to have a businessman as a president. Here is a someone who was actually a successfull businessman.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI am glad to see NRO finally paying attention to Herman Cain (in a positive way and seeing him as a viable candidate). Now that he is finally getting some traction, the long knives will also be coming out (not from NRO probably, but other so called Republicans will start getting upset their plans are being disrupted). So be it. I suspect Herman is ready for that too. I like Herman Cain a lot and hope he does well. Mr. Cain is the type of candidate the GOP needs.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseOf the declared candidates and probable candidates, Mr. Cain is my favorite. Only worrisome issue is he was a former head of a branch of the Fed. Since I'd like to abolish the Fed or at least move to a gold standard, I would like to know his position on monetary policy.
Very happy to see him getting some coverage.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseBroccoli, you'll like his answer.
External Link
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI just found a longer version of the same video, without the edits. I'm a HUGE fan of Herman Cain, and like others here I'm very excited to see him getting some traction finally. Let your friends know about him.
External Link
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseA cross-section of SOUTH CAROLINA REPUBLICANS overwhelmingly say black gentleman and hero of the Tea Party won the debate over a bunch of white gentlemen.
And the MSM is silent. It doesn't fit their filter. Southerners are racist; Republicans are racist, Tea Party members are racist.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI mentioned this inconvenient fact in another thread last week, but it looks like it bears repeating:
The American voting public will not elect anyone President who's never served in elective office. The last person to have done just that was Dwight D. Eisenhower. Now, if you want to compare the credentials of the Supreme Allied Commander of WWII with a pizza magnate and radio talk show host, have at it. But I suggest that folks stop deluding themselves and others into believing that Cain has any shot at all. He doesn't.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI'm surprised no one has mentioned that Clinton's retort was that you could pass the cost along to your customers.
Democrats don't raise taxes, you see. They just increase the cost of everything by 2%.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseMy liberal friends find Herman Cain "scary."
That's all the endorsement I need, really.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseLooking into the details of Clintoncare some more. The maximum percent of payroll an employer would be required to pay was 7.9%. Any healthcare costs after that would be subsidized by the government. So Clinton was correct in his calculations.There was no way Clintoncare would have caused Cain's healthcare costs to increase to 16% of his payroll costs.That doesn't mean Clinton's plan made sense. Just that Cain didn't really know what he was talking about.
I also agree with the point about putting someone in there with no political experience who has held no elective office. I don't see that working out. I also think going to the gold standard is a terrible idea, even if it were possible to do at this point, which it isn't. We wouldn't be in a position to go back to the gold standard for another 50 years given our current outstanding debt and our current gold reserves. It's silly to even talk about it.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseWhat strikes me the most about this actually is Clinton's reaction. . . how much better a politician he is than Obama. Obama would have gotten preachy and started pushing over his straw men. Bill Clinton has a sheen of imperturbability that the thin skinned Barack Obama tries to fake.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI'm going to have to go with Mr. Cain's numbers on this one. It was his business he was talking about; I'm sure he'd already run the numbers. In fact, he probably ran them himself, seeing as how he has a degree in mathematics and worked as a mathematician for the Department of the Navy.
Reply to this commentLinkReport Abuse