Former Republican primary candidate Herman Cain made Ohio State the last stop on his tour to deliver truth.
Herman Cain has been touring the country since Sept. 5. During this journey, he hoped to accomplish two goals: to encourage college students and business people to become more involved in the whole political process, and to make sure that they still believe in America.
Drew Stroemple, president of OSU College Republicans, introduced Cain, a former Republican candidate for the 2012 presidential race, to a crowd in the Ohio Union’s Griffin Grand Ballroom Nov. 1.
“It’s good to be back at The Ohio State University,” Cain said as he stepped onto the stage to greet a welcoming audience.
Cain visited OSU last November during his presidential rally bus tour, but this time his visit wasn’t focused on gaining votes.
He talked in detail about the importance of students not giving up on dreams but added that “there are themes in this country standing between us and our dreams.”
Cain said America is consumed by an overabundance of government, debt and energy dependence.
“Tax rates are going to come back to what they were 10 years ago,” Cain said. “It will be the biggest increase in taxes ever.”
Cain explained the importance of replacing, not reforming, the current tax code by promoting his 9-9-9 tax plan. According to the Tax Policy Center, his three-part system consists of a 9 percent national sales tax, a 9 percent business flat tax and a 9 percent individual flat tax.
“I told (former Massachusetts) Gov. (Mitt) Romney, ‘If you let 9-9-9 drip from lips, I’ll do back flips in Times Square,'” Cain said.
Cain closed his speech by stressing the importance of having students “be a part of the solution” for the economic problems plaguing the country, namely the $16 trillion national debt. Cain specifically mentioned three ways for young people to do this: stay informed, get involved and get inspired.
“Be a part of the solution and not part of the problem,” Cain said. “This is the greatest country in the world, and we need to keep it that way. Politics is not a spectator sport.”
After the speech, Stroemple posed questions written by students. During this segment, Cain addressed the infamous character attacks that tarnished his reputation after leading the poll for four weeks straight during the Republican candidacy race.
“I was attacked viciously for my character, which wasn’t true,” Cain said. “And do you know the people who it hurt the most? My family.”
In part of an infidelity scandal, Cain was accused of being sexually suggestive toward several women.
Aly Kovacevich, a first-year in biology and neuroscience, said Cain’s speech helped her better understand his philosophies and found it “inspiring to hear his stories.”
Cain said that after this tour, he is taking a long vacation and is afterward focusing his efforts on preparing for his radio show in January. He is replacing the conservative syndicated radio show host Neal Boortz.
Cain said he has no plans to run for office in the future, rather, he desires to be “a voice for the people.”
