Cain criticizes Obama's Iraq strategy as he courts Iowa football vote

By: Lindsey Boerma
Topics: Campaign 2012

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.

(Credit: AP Photo/Brian Ray)

AMES, 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.

"I can't for the life of me understand why you'd tell the enemy what you're going to do and when you're going to do it," he said. "That's just not common sense, I'm sorry."

The pizza magnate made his remarks at his second football game of a busy campaign Saturday in Iowa, the state that will cast the first votes of the 2012 presidential contest on Jan. 3. At the homecoming game of Iowa State University, earlier in the day, Cain showed up decked in red-and-yellow Cyclones gear. By the time he arrived here, he was in the regalia of the University of Iowa Hawkeyes.

Cain said he's not surprised by his recent surge in the polls here. "I started coming to Iowa last fall," he said. "And I think the fact we are leading in the polls in Iowa shows that when people get on the Cain train, they don't get off."

On Saturday, Cain emerged as the surprise victor of a straw poll conducted by the Western Republican Leadership Conference in Las Vegas, where he and a number of his GOP rivals spoke earlier this week.

Lindsey Boerma
Lindsey Boerma covers the 2012 presidential campaign for CBS News and National Journal.
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by obwan222 October 24, 2011 4:35 AM EDT: "I can't for the life of me understand why you'd tell the enemy what you're going to do and when you're going to do it," he said. "That's just not common sense, I'm sorry."

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Well, let's for a moment consider the possibility that "the enemy" is going to notice that all the US troops are leaving - that we can't sneak out of the country without anyone realizing it. Then it doesn't seem so wrong to announce it since everyone in the world is going to see it happening anyway.

Once we get over the silly idea that we can leave Iraq on the sly then the announcement begins to make sense.

One of the things that gets me about the GOP seven dwarfs trying to pile on Obama for leaving Iraq is that they seem to treat his announcement as if it were the final word.

In diplomacy (which none of them seem to have the slightest grasp of) you sometimes play to the crowd while waiting for the other shoe to drop.

The sticking point of negotiations is that the Iraqis don't want to extend diplomatic immunity to our troops. So we announce - that's it, we're leaving - good luck to your army in the future. Then we wait for them to blink.

I expect before the last of our forces leave in a few months, the Iraqi govt. will say - you know what, we might change our minds on that if you're willing to stay and help finish training our army. Then we can get serious again about how many troops have to stay to secure their country over the long haul.

The GOP mini-minds seem to think that all diplomacy is played out instantly in real-time and with absolute transparency on CNN, when in fact, it's an art form that goes for results over time with subtle messages designed to wear down your opponents.

I guess the GOP "brain trust" goes for the shout-it-out form of diplomacy to make up for the fact that none of them seem to have any solid foreign policy plans of their own.; Reply to this comment


by spengolf October 23, 2011 9:31 AM EDT: Mr. Cain and many of the Republican/tea party candidates are clearly misleading red state Republicans/tea party voters the resolution in which the president invoking in removing all military personnel from Iraq was signed by the former president George W Bush. This is not a decision clearly made by one president. This was an agreement made by members of the Congressional committee and the United States Congress. But what surprises me the most is how the news media has allowed these candidates to make these statements without questioning them on a stump speech, about the validity of this statement. This is why voters are so uninformed because we have a national news media and public broadcast system that is allowing these candidates to come out and say the most negative on true falsely made up statements about a resolution that was passed by the United States Congress. This clearly should tell the American public what side of the aisle, our national news media and public broadcast system is on and we call Rupert Murdoch was the only one; Reply to this comment


by kevjustice October 22, 2011 11:50 PM EDT: cain and his plan 9-9-9 from outer space! directed by ed wood! lol!; Reply to this comment

by vageorge October 22, 2011 10:09 PM EDT

Only the rich would survive under Cain

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by Anonymous1776 October 22, 2011 10:10 PM EDT: Obama has been much better. More hope and change? I didn't think so.

We need to releave the burden of government from the means of production and job growth. Only then will we see a recovery.

by sharoneman October 22, 2011 10:09 PM EDT

We need to get away from "Career Politicians". We need to elect people that have "proven" themselves worthy
of the position before we let them lead our country.
Herman Cain makes sense, he has a plan, he's NOT a politician. He has experience. He's a real person. Here is a man who offers an alternative to Obama's class warfare. He embraces the successful as role models not as objects of envy. He does not hate rich people. He wants us all to become rich. I've decided. Herman Cain has my support.

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by tipjet October 22, 2011 10:33 PM EDT: He's already back-peddling on the 999 tax. After announcing it and how simple it would be, he's had to institute numerous exclusions in a vane attempt to make it more fair. For example, it was a big surprise to him that the original plan would have taxed our existing wealth with a 9% sales tax. That's right. If we sold our houses, cars, property, etc. we would have had to pay a 9% tax. He subsequently, exempted existing house sales from the tax. And, now he's exempting one more thing after another. He also discovered what the rest of us knew already that a flat income tax is cruel and unusual punishment to the poor so he now says people under the poverty level won't have to pay tax but he hasn't said how he will accomplish this. In other words, he has accepted that his flat income tax plan has to be a "progressive" tax and not a flat tax. He still hasn't explained how his flat sales tax or, more commonly known as a consumption tax, promotes growth and jobs. It should have just the opposite effect. For someone who was once a CEO, he sure seems to be a really shallow thinker.


by Anonymous1776 October 22, 2011 10:46 PM EDT: @tipjet - Contrary to the liberal media, Cain didn't change his plan, as it always included exclusions for those living under the poverty line. And, his plan wasn't a 'surprise to him,' as he made it. Your claim makes no sense. Nice try.

The reason why his plan promotes economic and job growth is because it removes the burden of government from the means of production and job growth. For those that know that growth happens in the private sector, this is no surprise.


by Anonymous1776 October 22, 2011 10:01 PM EDT: "GOP presidential hopeful turns quick-change artist as he moves between Iowa football games"

How is Cain a 'quick-change artist' for visiting more than one football game? The accusation infers he's changed his position on something or that claimed to be a fan of both teams. That liberal bias that supposedly doesn't exist is alive and well here.; Reply to this comment

by vageorge October 22, 2011 9:45 PM EDT

Cain's tax plan is 999 turned upside down it's 666 I wonder if that is symbolic. Also there's Cain's curse the result of biblical Cain murdering his brother for his inheritance

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by Anonymous1776 October 22, 2011 10:24 PM EDT: And, the opposite of hope is despair and the opposite of change is to remain. Your comments are non-sensical, which also explains why you support Obama.


by vageorge October 22, 2011 9:34 PM EDT: Cain needs to get off the train and disappear as he is obama's pick of candidates to run against. obama can easily beat Cain. Cain is too similar to obama.
He plays the race card.
He is insensitive to the less fortunate
Has no feelings toward the elderly
They are so similar that obama knows exactly how to shred him in the election campaign. Cain is too easily confused and we need a leader not an apprentice politician.
obama may be secretly supporting Cain until it's time for the campaign; Reply to this comment

by azigo October 22, 2011 9:25 PM EDT

"Iran will go back in there"? When were they in there? The ugly divisive lying is just getting to be too much. The Republicans only know how to make war. Contemplating peace just baffles them. They should really join the 21st Century

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by vageorge October 22, 2011 9:37 PM EDT: Good grief ! What is wrong with you? If you support obama you are supporting the biggest proven liar in history. That makes your comments worthless


by Anonymous1776 October 22, 2011 9:57 PM EDT: It's well known that they were behind many of the attacks on our troops through the Iraq war. Do a little research.

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by soossspert October 22, 2011 9:22 PM EDT

"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"

"Back in"? When was Iran in Iraq in the first place?

IS Cain suggesting the US should remain in Iraq indefinitely?

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by Anonymous1776 October 22, 2011 10:07 PM EDT: It's well known that Iran was behind many of the attacks on US troops through the Iraq war. Do a little research.

The US should remain in Iraq until the terrorist and Iran threat is eliminated. Based on the actions of both, that could be some time.