Brutal: Cain blanks on Libya, supports collective bargaining for public employee unions

Hotair ^ | Monday November 14, 2011

[Bigtigermike]

You won’t believe me until you click play but this is much worse than Perry’s brain lock at the debate last week. Perry lost his train of thought; Cain doesn’t have a train at all here, to the point where he needs confirmation from the interviewer of what Obama’s position on Libya actually was.

Eventually he produces some boilerplate about not supporting the opposition until you’re sure who’s in it and of course not making a decision as president until he has all the information, which is a standard Cain fallback talking point whenever he gets in trouble on a question, but the first two minutes or so are pure agony. The board actually took pity on him, I think, by not following up.

And that still only barely qualifies as the worst answer he gave today. Here’s what he told them when asked, predictably enough, about Scott Walker’s righteous crusade against public employee unions:

"On the issue of collective bargaining, Cain said he supported the right of public employees to bargain collectively." But not collective hijacking. What I mean by that, if they have gotten so much for so many years and it’s going to bankrupt the state, I don’t think that’s good. It appears that in some instances, they really don’t care.”…

Cain also appeared to be unclear on the issue of collective bargaining as it involves federal employees. Asked if he thought federal employees should have the ability to bargain collectively, Cain said: “They already have it, don’t they?”

[mylife]

Cain and Kodos

"I've got all this stuff twirling in my head"

[LibertarianInExile]

You think NEWT is a winner? You don’t think that Newt, who worked for years in Congress and GOP fundraising, has line after line waiting to be mined for stupidity? Can I sell you a bridge? This is the guy who trots out his floozy like she’s some trophy to display in public and has the GALL to run for office—he’s no winner. I am one among many registered Republicans who will never punch a ballot for that slimy SOB, and that’s just on the basis of his morals. Imagine the exodus when his flip-flopping politics start being publicized!

[Forgotten Amendments]

Face it, bots: 2012 is 1996. Obama will win by default. He SHOULD be slaughtered, but the Dole of 2012 won't even have the luxury of naming a Kemp for VEEP.

If you care about freedom, forget about the GOP, get fluent in Spanish or an Asian language, and make sure your kids have passports.

[DTogo]

Cain took his time to answer the question, and his answer was very reasonable on Libya. IMHO

[chilepup]

There are issues...issues he won’t survive

[cookcounty]

A Rick Perry moment. argh!

[ex-snook]

Peter principle has set in.

[bubman]

Interviewer;

Do you agree with Obama on Libya or not?

Cain carefully considers the question and gets the interviewer to clarify exactly what his question is

He then goes into explaining what he would have done better than Obama. what is it that with this point that you disagree with? We are dealing with hypotheticals here. I heard circular answers from Romney, Newt, Huntsman yet Cain get nailed. please!!

[Yaelle]

I am worried about how the media butchered him back in the 90s.

---

Did the media force him to blank Calista on his big Speaker Desk?

[Ozymandias Ghost]

“When you start lumping police and firemen with the teacher, etc unions you have a problem”

Exactly; and I thought Cain was very adroit in trying to sidestep that question. I am sure various Republican/Conservative analysts are still attempting to understand the significance of what happened in the Ohio vote; which seemed to support issues that were politically 180 degrees apart.

Additionally, Cain would know (having worked as a civilian employee of the Dept of the Navy) that there are many Federal employees in DoD whose working conditions/pay are subject to union negotiations (even if the employee doesn't belong to a union himself/herself) and many of these employees are from military families or are former military themselves. Many of them vote Conservatively.

[cookcounty]

I agree. He answers like a business guy. He wants to gather the facts, and avoid shooting from the hip with bumper-sticker absolutes. When he answered the question about trading a Taliban-captured US soldier for Khalid Sheik Muhammed, he started out by expressing it would be a bad idea, but as he began to consider the universe of possible approaches, he allowed that under some circumstances, he could see doing it.

Which is the correct answer.

[Mariner]

Cite the source please so I may learn about it.

I have not heard of Newt supporting Obama/Duncan/Sharpton "education reforms".

[tlozo]

Definite Cain brain freeze.

[fightinJAG]

For Cain to speak at this rally and not know the ENTIRE point was that the union was pissed that their collective bargaining ‘rights’ had been taken away is pathetic.

Or maybe it's pathetic to not know that the ENTIRE point of Governor Walker's legislation was that the collective bargaining "rights" of unions had been LIMITED, NOT "taken away"?

from HERE:

Public employee unions have already said they were prepared to pay more money for health insurance and pension benefits, but they have balked at having their collective bargain rights restrained. The measure affects public employee unions except for police and fire.

Under the legislation, unions will not be able to bargain for health and pension benefits, will be limited in what they can seek in pay raises and have such other provisions as automatic dues payment modified.

[fightinJAG]

I had not heard of it either until I came across this article from September last night:

Newt Gingrich and his Record

This was written while Gingrich was still very much dead in the polls.

I posted the article last night to see if other freepers had heard of this and what their thoughts were. Unfortunately, the now-predictable ensued.

I was going to research it more, but haven't had time yet.

[Lady Lucky]

He then goes into explaining what he would have done better than Obama. what is it that with this point that you disagree with?

I can't answer it any better than I already have in several posts.

[bubman]

He was alluding to nuclear propulsion carriers. Did know that Nimitz class carriers use nuclear propulsion? Did know that Chinese carriers do not?

http://articles.maritimepropulsion.com/article/PLAN-Aircraft-Carrier-on-Sea-Trials-after-Dalian-Refit-1228.aspx

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_aircraft_carrier_programme

Get with the program. The man worked as a ballistics specialist for the navy.

[JLAGRAYFOX]

One thing I have learned in life, especially in politics, nothing that the media, or political enemies conjur up usually is fatal or true!!! Life is basically the same trip!!! I no longer listen to politicians or pundits. They all have their own mantra and axe to grind. So folks this race for the POTUS is just getting started!!! Anything can and will happen. So.....as Mr. Cain, in his wisdom as a business leader so aptly states, lighten up folks and join the circus. I mean, come on, the Politico, Bialek, Allred, lunatic accusation binge is loaded with lots of laughs, but....absolutely no substance. Here today, gone tomorrow!!! So....lighten up!!! Herman Cain has done us all a great service, simply by pointing out and proving that most politiicans, pundits, politico’s are naught but empty suits at the end of the day, as my British friends like to say!!!

[bubman]

thank you for the refreshing clarity. Too many people have WAY too much time in their hands. peace out

[Gator113]

That was not only BRUTAL, it was PAINFUL to watch and it may very well prove to be FATAL.