Is There Another Underdog Triumph in the Making?

In 2008, our nation witnessed one of the greatest stories ever when Barrack Obama won both the Democratic nomination and the Presidential election. He did this despite his age, race, lack of qualifications and experience, and disputes over his ironic middle name Hussein. Minus age and an unusual middle name, Herman Cain might have a chance to come out of nowhere and win the Republican Nomination. What once seemed to be a neck and neck battle between Mitt Romney and Rick Perry is no longer the according to CNN latest polls that have Romney with the support of 20% of likely Republican primary voters, Cain with 17%, and Perry with 15%. Also, Cain shocked the nation when he won the Florida straw pole.

However, defying the odds is what Cain has always done. Nobody would have thought that someone born to working class parents in Atlanta would become one of this centuries most intriguing Renaissance Man so far. His journey to his current battle for the nomination is strikingly different from his opponents. Cain has a Master's degree in computer science and worked in the field but he was not satisfied. He decided to enter the business world and started from the bottom, flipping burgers at Burger King. After a few years, he became the CEO of the struggling God Father's Pizza Company and turned it around. However, Cain's biggest triumph was his victorious battle over colon cancer in which he was given a 13% chance of survival. 

Can he beat the odds yet again? Unlike most of his opponents, Cain is a straight talker which is a double-edged sword. During this time of economic turmoil our country needs someone to tell it like it is but some people just have a hard time hearing the truth. In the midst if the Occupy Wall Street movement, Cain tells people not to blame Wall Street for their misfortunes. Instead he bluntly stated: "Don't blame big banks. If you don't have a job and you're not rich, blame yourself." His plan for reviving our economy is also unconventional. His 9-9-9 plan has the objective of completely transforming our tax code. The system would be replaced with a 9 percent corporate tax, 9 percent personal income tax, and a 9 percent national sales tax. He claims that his number 9 plan would positively transform our economy because it promotes growth, as well as it would "free taxpayers from a complicates tax code that has become the 21st Century's version of slavery." He also been critical of President Obama. His most powerful argument plays off of his battle with cancer because he claims that if he had gotten sick during Obamacare, he would've died.

It looks like Cain's resume as a businessman is behind a lot of his success. But since business and the economy is not the only issue of concern, he still has a long way to go if he is to win the nomination. Although his number 9 plan gives many people hope, it leaves many skeptical as well. How many Americans will go after the idea of a national sales tax? Also, many believe that due to his lack of experience in politics, he is very far from being qualified to handle measures regarding foreign policy. If Cain were to win this nomination, it might mark a new trend in the political world as a whole. Our struggling economy has led the voters to respect politicians who have experience in business. If Cain pulls this off, it is reasonable to assume that we will see many former business men turned politicians in the future.




Links used:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/herman-cain-talks-tax-reform-with-9-9-9-proposal/2011/09/29/gIQARO6nCL_story.html

http://www.hermancain.com/about

http://www.cnn.com/2011/10/07/politics/rising-cain/index.html?hpt=po_bn1