Dear skeptics and critics

By Herman Cain  

May 29th, 2011

 

Wow! I must be causing some people quite a concern as a candidate for the Republican nomination for president. The establishment skeptics are still stuck in the traditional campaign paradigm of immediate name ID, lots of money, and having held a worthy elective office before. The critics are pounding on what they perceive as my weaknesses. And the Democratic National Committee now has me on its radar and is sharpening its blades for a Cain attack.

I’m running for president . . . and I don’t run for second place

“Just to be clear, I’m running for president of the United States of America, and I’m not running for second place.”

That was my announcement on Saturday May 21, 2011 in Atlanta’s Centennial Olympic Park. It was a high noon event with over 15,000 of my closest friends in attendance!

I wanted to be very clear of my intentions because of the usual three reservations expressed by skeptics about a “dark horse” candidate winning the Republican nomination for the presidency. Name recognition, money and not being a previous office holder are the usual negatives pointed out by political pundits.

I’m not going to shoot from the lip on Afghanistan

5-15-2011

Ever since the South Carolina Republican presidential debate, reporters have continued to challenge me for not having a specific plan for our nation’s involvement in Afghanistan. They continue to think that if you are running for president then you must have an answer for everything. I don’t! A real leader has the right questions for everything.

When asked about what I would do about our involvement in the war in Afghanistan during the debate, I answered by asking the questions that should have been asked before we got involved many years ago. What is our mission? How does it serve our interest? Is there a path to victory? If not, then what is our exit strategy?