King starts with the shining city question.
Says we are the shining city because people are trying to sneak in, not sneak out of America. Says we must first secure our position and America will not weaken its military strength. Mentions his 9-9-9 plan. 9% corporate tax, 9% personal income, 9% sales tax on the way to Fair Tax. Asked about immigration.
Professor's turn. Asking about Dredd Scott comparison to Roe vs. Wade and using the 14th amendment due process & equal protection clause to protect life at all stages. Cain could support that. Cain defines a limited roll for the executive.
(More stream problems.) Some question asked about same-sex adoptions and Catholics in Illinois. Says the feds should not be subsidizing programs that discriminate against legitimate religions.
Question about poverty and marriage culture. Cain says stop incentivizing broken homes. Says Detroit could become an empowerment zone. Says economic rebound would have a ripple effect and help move towards rebuilding the family. Would Cain choose a running mate with prolife views? yes. DeMint asks about debt. Cain says boost economic growth. Says bold tax changes will work. Under JFK. Also in 1980s. Says cut spending, say, 10% across the board and then go through every agency looking for deep cuts. Supports personal retirement accounts as an alternative to Social Security as Chile had done. Asked about a Balanced Budget Amendment, Cain supports. Says the will isn't there without one. Mentions reduction in growth isn't a cut, it's deceiving the American people.
Asked about QE and the Fed. Cain says the Fed can be fixed. Says congress should limit its authority. Says the dual mission (inflation vs unemployment) needs to be ended because it's like trying to hit two targets with one arrow. Return the Fed to what it was created for in 1913. He also wants to move back towards a gold standard or some other standard so a dollar is a dollar. Cain's time up. Newt next.
Professor up first. Again with Sect. 5 of 14th amendment on equal protection question. Can Congress can use it to overturn Roe vs Wade. Newt says yes. Attacks the Warren court for expanding court's power. Lists other examples where the court has gone too far. Says Congress has the power to regulate the court's jurisdiction and should. Says he wouldn't go as far as Jefferson when he eliminated many posts. He'd only remove Judge (Sam) Biery of San Antonio and the 9th Circuit. (People laugh.)
Newt says given the state of things a federal marriage amendment is the only way to defend marriage.
DeMint mentions stimulus and coming Obama job's plan. Says Obama won't listen to his failures. Said going to Detroit would've been a great opportunity to learn this. Says repeal Dodd-Frank (Perry mentioned this at his SC townhall this morning). Would replace EPA with a solutions agency. Would repeal Sarbanes Oxley. 0 cap gains. 12.5% corporate tax rate. 100% expensing so farmers and others will have the most modern equipment. No death tax because it's immoral.
What about debt? Quit running a deficit. Says he favors it for practical reasons. Says the super committee is a dumb idea. Suggests modernizing government to save billions. Mentions "Strong America Now."
King asks what his first legislative priority would be. Says the King bill to repeal ObamaCare. Talking about Lincoln as an example of decision making and seeking God's guidance.
Asked about immigration. Too many legal immigrants? Merit system over familial connections? Says economic weakness is a limiting factor on allowable immigration numbers. Mentions importance of assimilation. Mentions hundreds of languages used in Chicago Schools. Says comprehensive immigration reform cannot happen. Bush couldn't do it with one party gov't and Obama couldn't with his party gov't. Border control first. 100% of control however that needs to be done. Jokingly would ship half the bureaucrats in DC to the border. Ron Paul up next.