Perry Targets Romney in Heated Debate

By John McCormick and Julie Hirschfeld Davis - Oct 19, 2011 11:40 AM GMT+0700

Herman Cain fought to stay in the top tier of the Republican presidential field as Rick Perry tried to recapture the role of Mitt Romney’s chief tormentor in an anger-tinged debate that spotlighted the sharpening contours of the primary contest.

Cain, a former chief executive officer of Godfather’s Pizza whose surging poll numbers have put the national spotlight on him, saw his 9-9-9 tax plan attacked by the six other candidates on a stage last night in economically battered Las Vegas.

“I like your chutzpah on this, Herman, but I have to tell you, the analysis that I did -- person by person, return by return -- is that middle-income people see higher taxes under your plan,” said Romney, 64, a former Massachusetts governor who is vying with Cain for the front-runner position in the nomination contest.

Perry, the governor of Texas, sought to recapture momentum after several weak debate performances and a drop in his popularity in the polls by training his fire on Romney during much of the debate. At one point Perry accused Romney of taking a hard rhetorical line on illegal immigration while once having hired undocumented workers.

‘Height of Hypocrisy’

“You hired illegals in your home, and you knew about it for a year,” Perry said to Romney. “And the idea that you stand here before us and talk about that you’re strong on immigration is on its face the height of hypocrisy.”

Romney rejected the charge, which surfaced during his failed presidential run in 2008, saying a lawn-care company he hired to work on his property had employed the illegal immigrants, not him.

Romney scolded Perry, saying, “This has been a tough couple of debates for Rick, and I understand that. And so you’re going to get testy.”

As the two grappled to be heard over each other, Romney reached over and put his hand on Perry’s shoulder and lectured him on being presidential.

“You have a problem with allowing someone to finish speaking,” Romney said. “And I suggest that, if you want to become president of the United States, you got to let both people speak.”

The debate, moderated by CNN anchor Anderson Cooper and held at the Venetian Resort Hotel Casino, is the eighth such gathering for the Republicans since May 5.

Perry’s Challenge

Perry, 61, was watched closely to see if he could muster something more than what he and others have called mediocre debate performances that have helped lower his standing in the Republican race over the last two months to third place from front-runner.

In introducing himself at the debate’s start, he called himself “an authentic conservative, not a conservative of convenience,” a swipe at Romney, who has been accused by Democrats and Republicans of changing his views on a variety of issues.

As he has in previous debates, Romney managed to deflect the attacks directed toward him, as he tried to present himself as the most polished candidate and his party’s best bet to beat President Barack Obama in the 2012 general election.

Cain, 65, has gained national attention in part because of his proposal to replace the federal tax system with 9 percent business and individual taxes and a 9 percent sales tax.

Perry said he would be releasing his own national jobs plan soon, as he dismissed Cain’s proposal to spur the economy.

“I’ll bump plans with you, brother,” he said. Of Cain’s plan, he said: “It’s not going to fly.”

‘Regressive’ Plan

U.S. Representative Ron Paul of Texas termed Cain’s plan “regressive,” and said it would be “very, very dangerous” for the country.

Cain said his rivals were wrongly attempting to conflate his plan with existing state sales taxes, saying it was like comparing apples and oranges.

“And I am going to be getting a bushel basket that has apples and oranges in it, because I’m going to pay both taxes,” Romney quipped.

Cain dismissed the criticism from his rivals, saying they didn’t comprehend the facts behind his idea and were mischaracterizing it.

“Once again, unfortunately, none of my distinguished colleagues who have attacked me up here tonight understand the plan,” Cain said. “I invite every family to do your own calculations.”

New Study

Some of Cain’s rivals cited a study released yesterday that said his plan would raise taxes on those with low and middle incomes, while most wealthy taxpayers would pay less under it.

The 9-9-9 plan would translate into a tax cut for almost 71 percent of Americans with cash income between $200,000 and $500,000, according to an analysis by the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center in Washington that was built around the assumption that the 2001 and 2003 federal tax cuts will be extended permanently.

About 95 percent of Americans with income between $30,000 and $40,000 would pay more in taxes under Cain’s plan, the analysis said, while about 95 percent of Americans with income exceeding $1 million would receive a tax cut.

Cain stood by a comment he made recently about protestors occupying Wall Street -- a movement that has spread to cities around the nation and overseas -- who he said should blame themselves, not Wall Street, if they don’t have jobs and aren’t rich.

Wrong Target

“They might be frustrated with Wall Street and the bankers, but they’re directing their anger at the wrong place,” Cain said. “They ought to be over in front of the White House taking out their frustration.”

Romney continued to face criticism over the Massachusetts health-care law he signed as governor -- a measure that, like the one Obama pushed into law last year, required that everyone purchase medical insurance.

“You just don’t have credibility, Mitt, when it comes to repealing Obamacare,” said former U.S. Senator Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania. “Your plan was the basis for Obamacare. Your consultants helped Obama craft Obamacare, and to say that you’re going to repeal it, you just -- you have no track record on that that we can trust you that you’re going to do that.”

Romney said he never advocated using his Massachusetts measure as a model for a national overhaul.

‘Bad News’

“It was something crafted for a state, and I’ve said time and again, Obamacare is bad news,” Romney said. “If I’m president of the United States, I will repeal it.”

Perry and Romney criticized each other’s records as they tried to portray themselves as the most qualified to offer the best alternative to Obama on creating jobs and improving the economy.

“What we need is someone who will draw a bright contrast between themselves and President Obama,” Perry said.

Romney, citing a report by the Washington-based Center for Immigration Studies, said that half the jobs created during Perry’s tenure as governor went to illegal immigrants.

Perry said Romney was “absolutely incorrect” in his assertion, saying that the report he cited had been discredited. The immigration studies group promotes itself as dedicated to promoting a “low immigration, pro-immigrant” vision for America.

Paul’s Points

Paul used the forum to spotlight his libertarian views, arguing against government involvement in health care and energy subsidies and for an end to U.S. military operations abroad.

“This debt bubble is the thing you better really worry about because it’s imploding on us right now; it’s worldwide,” Paul said. “To cut military spending is a wise thing to do.”

The other debate participants were U.S. Representative Michele Bachmann of Minnesota and former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich of Georgia.

Responding to criticism leveled by Santorum, Perry denied he supported the 2008 financial bailout of banks, saying a letter of support he co-wrote the day Congress voted on it was a call for less regulation and lower taxes, not a rescue plan.

The letter that Perry, then the head of the Republican Governors’ Association co-wrote with his Democratic counterpart at the time, said, “We urge Congress to leave partisanship at the door and pass an economic recovery package.” It concluded that, “Congress needs to act now.”

The debate came at a pivot point in the campaign, as the candidates prepare to take a break from debates and intensify their campaigns in key caucus and primary states. Those with the financial resources are also likely to soon start ramped-up television and radio advertising in those locales.

Fence Issue

As Cain’s poll numbers have risen, with some surveys showing him atop the Republican field, he has been put on the defensive over comments he made in Tennessee on Oct. 15 saying he favors building an electrified fence along the U.S. border with Mexico that could kill those seeking illegal entry.

The next day, he said he was joking on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” Yesterday, Cain termed his suggestion “hyperbole” in a CNN interview.

In the debate, Cain said the border should be secured with a “combination of a fence, technology, as well as possibly boots on the ground for some of the more dangerous areas.”

Nevada recorded the nation’s highest unemployment rate in August, 13.4 percent, well above the national average of 9.1 percent. It also has the highest rate of foreclosure filings.

Immigration issues surfaced during the debate, in part because Nevada’s population is 27 percent Hispanic, according to census data. It’s an issue the other Republican candidates have tried to use against Perry because of his support in Texas for college tuition breaks for illegal immigrants, something unpopular with conservatives.

Huntsman Absent

Former Utah Governor Jon Huntsman Jr. skipped this debate to protest Nevada’s decision to move its caucuses to Jan. 14. New Hampshire officials say that would crowd their primary, which traditionally follows the Iowa caucuses as the nation’s second nominating contest. Iowa Republicans said Oct. 17 they will hold their state’s caucuses Jan. 3; New Hampshire has yet to select a date for its primary, and the official in charge of doing so has said he might schedule it for December.

Huntsman has based his campaign almost entirely around trying to win the New Hampshire primary, where polls show Romney far ahead of his rivals.

A CNN/ORC International poll of Republicans and Republican- leaning independents conducted Oct. 14-16 showed Romney with 26 percent and Cain with 25 percent, a statistical tie. Perry, at 13 percent, was the only other candidate to break into double- digits.

The poll, with a margin of error of plus or minus 5 percentage points, also found that two-thirds of Republicans say their minds are yet to be made up over whom to support, suggesting the race is far from settled.

To contact the reporters on this story: John McCormick in Las Vegas, Nevada, at jmccormick16@bloomberg.net; Julie Hirschfeld Davis in Washington at jdavis159@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Mark Silva at msilva34@bloomberg.net