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Please tell us all where you get the idea that this is a VAT ?

With a Retail SALES tax of 9%:

1. A dairy farmer produces a gallon of milk at a cost of $1.00 per gallon. He marks it up 45% to give him enough profit to stay in business, and sells his milk to a processor for $1.45.
2. The processor marks it up 45% to give enough profit to stay in business, and sells the milk to a wholesaler for $2.10 per gallon.
3. The wholesaler marks it up 45% to give enough profit to stay in business, and sells the milk to a grocery for $3.05 per gallon.
4. The grocery marks it up 45% to give enough profit to stay in business, and puts the milk on the store shelves at $4.42 per gallon.
5. A parent buys the milk to put on their cereal at home, and pays 9% sales tax at the cash register, resulting in a cost to the consumer of $4.82 per gallon.

With a 9% VAT tax, again starting with $1.00 per gallon to produce the milk from the Cow:

1. A dairy farmer produces a gallon of milk at a cost of $1.00 per gallon. He marks it up 45% to give him enough profit to stay in business, AND he charges the 9% VAT tax, and sells his milk to a processor for $1.58.
2. The processor marks it up 45% to give enough profit to stay in business, AND he charges the 9% VAT tax, and sells the milk to a wholesaler for $2.50 per gallon.
3. The wholesaler marks it up 45% to give enough profit to stay in business, AND he charges the 9% VAT tax, and sells the milk to a grocery for $3.95 per gallon.
4. The grocery marks it up 45% to give enough profit to stay in business, AND he charges the 9% VAT tax, and puts the milk on the store shelves at $6.24 per gallon.
5. A parent buys the milk to put on their cereal at home at a cost of $6.24 per gallon, retail price, no sales tax.

Net difference to the consumer = $1.42 per gallon MORE under a 9% VAT tax than under a 9% sales tax.

Because we already have sales taxes, and Cain’s 9-9-9 adds a new and extra tax on top of the sales tax. Now, you can all it what you want, it is still effectively a sales tax heaped on top of an already existing sales tax, effectively, in most states, doubling that sales tax, so it basically is a VAT tax in sheep’s clothing. Call it what you want, it’s still the same screw job.

“Please tell us all where you get the idea that this is a VAT ?
With a Retail SALES tax of 9%”

“Herman Cain would seem to agree—that is, the Herman Cain of less than one year ago. Here’s what he had to say less than a year ago on November 21, 2010:

The worst idea is a proposed national sales tax, which is a disguised VAT (value added tax) on top of everything we already pay in federal taxes...In every country that has established a VAT with the promise of reducing their national debt, the VAT has eventually gone up or expanded on top of the existing tax structure. After discovering many of the tax grenades in the recently passed health care deform bill, which is already driving costs up and access down, it would be real easy for an overzealous bureaucrat to insert the language in the legislation “national retail and wholesale” tax.
Herman Cain (last year’s version) is correct. A VAT would be a horrible idea for America. So why is it one-third of 9-9-9?