Cain reaches out to GOP rivals
Herman Cain speaks during a rally with supporters, Nov. 17, 2011, in Nashua, N.H.
/ AP Photo/Jim ColeIn the hours before he makes his planned midday announcement about the future of his presidential campaign, Republican candidate Herman Cain reached out to some of his rivals.
"We have talked to the Cain Camp, but we don't want to characterize the conversations," said Alice Stewart, a spokesman for Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn.
Cain was in a downtown Atlanta hotel Saturday morning, near the site of his campaign headquarters, which he was scheduled to formally open today. He has said he will announce his plans there at an early afternoon appearance.
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Herman Cain draws hecklers
AP Photo/Mark Humphrey
MURFREESBORO, Tenn.-- Though he assured the dean of Middle Tennessee State University that there would be no politics during his visit, Herman Cain called it "tempting" to respond to a handful of protesters who interrupted his lecture here Thursday night.
As Cain was recounting his climb up the Pillsbury company's corporate ladder to a full lecture hall of about 300 students, someone shouted, "Mic check!" setting off a minute's worth of shouting from the audience. "We are the 99 percent!" several representing Occupy Wall Street chanted; "Sexual abuse is unacceptable!" one student hollered.
In counter-protest, several students yelled at the protesters to leave; one said, "We actually want to hear him, now get out!" Shortly afterwards, the protesters did.
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Cain sounds a defiant note
Herman Cain
DAYTON, Ohio - Sounding like a candidate looking for a reason to stay in the race, Herman Cain on Wednesday told supporters here he is the victim of "character assassination" and appealed to them to stick with him in the face of another allegation of sexual misconduct.
"Stay inspired," Cain told an enthusiastic audience of several hundred people at a local hotel. "They want me to believe that we can't do this. They want you to believe that with enough character assassination on me that I will drop out."
Continue » Cain may not call it quits after all
CBS News
HILLSDALE, MICH-- Don't count Herman Cain out of the GOP presidential race just yet.
After Cain set off speculation he was about to withdraw with a Tuesday morning conference call in which he said he was "reassessing" his candidacy following one woman's allegation that she and Cain carried on a 13-year affair, signs later in the day seemed to indicate that the ebullient Georgia businessman isn't ready to call it quits.
Just before unveiling his foreign policy plan to a crowd of about 500 at Hillsdale College in Michigan, Cain's Twitter account read: "The definition of reassess is: To consider again, esp. while paying attention to new factors. Doesn't sound like dropping out..."
Campaign advisers sought to relay a similar sentiment to National Journal and CBS News, portraying the "reassessment" as just another transition in the rollercoaster campaign.
Cain campaign manager Mark Block and spokesman JD Gordon both confirmed that Cain has no plans to drop his bid for the GOP presidential nomination.
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Cain pins money pitch to supercommittee failure
Republican presidential contender Herman Cain
Herman Cain is latching onto the failure of the congressional "super committee" in an attempt to jump-start his flagging campaign. Cain sent a fundraising e-mail to supporters on Tuesday titled, "Super Committees Don't Solve Problems. Leaders Do."
In the e-mail, Cain faults President Obama for having "forced Congress to establish the super committee and then said 'NO' to any serious plan to cut spending." (In fact, the super committee was part of a bipartisan deal reached over the summer. The deal, signed to law by Obama, also stipulated that the committee's failure would trigger $1.2 trillion in automatic cuts over 10 years.)
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Cain: God convinced me to run for president
AP Photo/ John L. Russell
ATLANTA, Ga. - Herman Cain, whose campaign could use some redemption in the wake of a sexual harassment scandal, told a crowd of young Republicans on Saturday that God convinced him to run for president and that he "prayed and prayed and prayed" about it.
The Republican contender made no mention of the allegations from former subordinates at the National Restaurant Association. But his comments here were accented with more than the usual references to his faith and his calling to politics.
"I prayed and prayed and prayed. I'm a man of faith, I had to do a lot of praying for this one, more praying than I'd ever done before in my life," Cain told a crowd of more than 100 at the Young Republican National Federation, an event hosted by the Georgia Young Republicans at the Westin Peachtree Plaza. "And when I finally realized that it was God saying that this is what I needed to do, I was like Moses: 'You've got the wrong man, Lord. Are you sure?'"
Continue » Despite scandal, Cain draws huge crowds in Michigan
Herman Cain greets the crowd at a campaign stop at Streeters Nightclub in Traverse City, Mich., Nov. 10, 2011.
/ AP Photo/ John L. RussellCain made only brief mention of the issue that has defined his campaign over the past two weeks - allegations that he made sexual overtures to four subordinates when he headed the National Restaurant Association in the 1990s. But he did reveal more reasons he thinks he is the target of four separate complaints from woman who worked at the NRA.
"The thing about me, which is why I'm being attacked, the reason I'm being attacked is because I'm not part of the political class. That's why I'm being attacked. I know that and you know that," Cain said. At another Michigan earlier on Thursday, Cain said he believes he is a target because he refuses to be "politically correct."
CBS News Poll: Cain tops 3-way race with Romney, Gingrich
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Cain: "I've been through hell"
AP Photo/Matt York
KALAMAZOO, Mich. - Herman Cain told supporters that he has "been through hell" after nearly two weeks of headlines about sexual harassment allegations, but the Republican presidential candidate insisted his supporters are encouraging him in ways that count - all the way to the bank.
Arriving here in blizzard-like conditions, Cain found about 300 people waiting for him in a banquet all. "You all don't know how encouraging this is," he told the crowd.
"Over the last couple of weeks, I've been through hell," Cain continued. "Now here's the good news: It didn't kill me or slow us down one bit."
Cain, who has denied accusations that he made unwanted overtures to four female subordinates when he was head of the National Restaurant Association in the mid-1990s, said he has received "overwhelming" support. "People were actually voting with their dollars," he said.
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Cain blames sex allegations on successful career
Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain speaks at a conference Nov. 2, 2011.
/ AP Photo/Cliff OwenHours after the first of four accusers went public Monday with a specific account of sexual harassment alleged against Herman Cain while he was head of the National Restaurant Association in the 1990s, the presidential candidate e-mailed supporters a 917-word commentary chalking the controversy up to a long and successful career.
After outlining the rungs of the business ladder that led to his being named CEO of Godfather's Pizza and eventually his NRA tenure, Cain argued that he "can't even begin to recall how many conversations I had with people during that time, how many directives I gave, how much friendly banter might have taken place."
He went on to observe that "at some point during a career like this, someone will not like things you do, or how you do it. Someone will complain. That is just the nature of things if you've ever done much in your life."
Continue » Herman Cain: Factions are out "to destroy me"
Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain speaks after meeting with doctors attending the Docs4PatientCare conference in Alexandria, Va., Wednesday, Nov. 2, 2011.
/ AP Photo/Cliff OwenMcLEAN, Va.--During a spectacularly bad week for his GOP presidential campaign, businessman Herman Cain complained to a large audience of technology executives on Wednesday morning that "there are factions that are trying to destroy me."
And in sign that the crisis for Cain may get even worse, the Associated Press reported in the afternoon that a third woman has reported being sexually harassed by the former pizza executive when he headed the National Restaurant Association from 1996 to 1999. The woman, a former employee of the trade group, complained about "aggressive" and "unwanted" behavior by Cain, the wire service reports.
Cain, who has changed his story about what he remembers of the allegations several times, has said that confidentiality agreements prevent him from discussing details.
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Cain "trying to think back" on harassment claims
Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain continued to deny allegations of sexual harassment in a series of interviews Monday but offered more details on the incidents that he believes triggered the complaints and a resulting settlement deal that he earlier said was inked without his knowledge.
"As I have been beat upon all day on this, I'm trying to think back to, well what could it have been?" Cain told reporters outside PBS Newshour studios in Shirlington, Va.. after a day of responding to a report, which first surfaced in Politico, that he has sexually harassed two female subordinates at the National Restaurant Association. Cain, a former pizza company executive, headed the trade association from 1996-99. The two women later left the association after reaching undisclosed financial settlements.
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Herman Cain: "I'll take the arrows later"
Mark Block, Herman Cain's chief of staff, said on Monday the presidential candidate has "never sexually harassed anybody. Period. End of story."
Block's comment on MSNBC comes a day after Politico reported allegations that Cain engaged in inappropriate behavior with two women when he was head of the National Restaurant Association.
"Mr. Cain has never sexually harassed anyone. Period," Block repeated several times on MSNBC's Daily Rundown.
Cain is in Washington today for a series of speeches and meetings with members of Congress, and said he will address the allegations at a speech at a luncheon at the National Press Club today.
In a morning appearance at the American Enterprise Institute, Cain did not acknowledge the story that threatens to sink his presidential campaign. He arrived surrounded by several body guards, and called out a cheery "Good morning!" to the herd of reporters chasing him outside the think tank.
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Cain: I'm in to win, not to get on TV
Republican Presidential hopeful Herman Cain campaigns in Talladega, Ala., Friday, Oct. 28, 2011.
/ AP Photo/Dave MartinTUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- At a campaign stop here, Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain on Saturday took pains to reassure his supporters that he is a real candidate with a real strategy, not a celebrity-seeking opportunist.
"There's one myth out there that I want to clarify. I am in it to win it, not to get a TV show," Cain told a crowd of about 200 people at the Bryant Conference Center.
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Cain plays Iowa football field
Republican presidential hopeful, businessman Herman Cain, campaigns outside of Kinnick stadium in Iowa City, Iowa, before Iowa's NCAA college football game against Indiana, Oct. 22, 2011.
/ AP Photo/Brian RayAMES, Iowa -- Herman Cain on Saturday became the latest Republican presidential hopeful to blast President Obama's Iraq policy, predicting that the withdrawal of U.S. troops is "gonna leave a big vacuum" that Iran will fill.
"I happen to think that Iran is just sitting back and waiting for us to leave and then they're going to go back in and they're going to try to control the whole country," Cain said. He also criticized the president's decision to announce that U.S. troops will be home by Christmas.
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Under fire, Herman Cain tweaks 9-9-9 plan
AP
Stung by criticism that it would disproportionately burden poor and middle-class Americans, Herman Cain tweaked his 9-9-9 tax plan Friday, changing the plan to include exemptions for businesses that invest in downtrodden areas and a mandate that Americans under the poverty line not pay income taxes.
For those living below the poverty level, "Your plan isn't 9-9-9, it's 9-0-9," the former Godfather's Pizza executive said in Detroit. The 9-9-9 plan refers to a nine percent flat business tax, income tax and sales tax.
"Say amen, y'all," Cain added. "In other words if you are at or below the poverty level based on family size, then you don't pay that middle 9 tax on your income. This is how we help the poor."
Cain has been criticized both by Democrats and his Republican rivals for a plan that a number of independent analyses have found would raise taxes on poor and middle-class Americans while cutting taxes for the rich. A recent analysis from the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center found the plan would increase taxes on 84 percent of Americans, with those in the lowest income bracket hit the hardest.
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