GOP presidential hopeful Herman Cain, who is neck and neck with Mitt Romney in the latest polls, refused to get drawn into a debate over the former Massachusetts governor’s Mormon faith.
“I’m not running for theologian in chief,” Cain said on CNN’s “State of the Union” today, responding to a question about the controversial comment of Texas pastor Robert Jeffress on Friday that Mormonism is a “cult.”
When moderator Candy Crowley pressed Cain to weigh in, he held his ground, saying that the festering debate over whether Romney is a Christian is “not going to help us boost this economy and you know that’s my number one priority.”
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Still clearly reaping the benefits of his straw poll victory in Florida, Cain did say that he would make sure no Muslim jihadists and extremists would “infiltrate” his Cabinet if elected president.
“I have nothing against peaceful Muslims,” he insists.
Presidential candidate Michele Bachmann, also appearing on the show, agreed that the controversy over religious is “inconsequential” to the election.
“We have religious tolerance in this country, and we understand that people have different views on their faith,” the Minnesota congresswoman said. “I have a very sincerely held belief on faith and I think we just leave it at that.”
Cain also told Crowley that he opposes a proposed surcharge on millionaires to fund President Barack Obama’s jobs bill because it doesn’t solve the problem of too much government spending. “The economy is on life support so it doesn’t solve the problem,” he says. “All it does is it fans the flame of class warfare.”
Cain called the jobs bill a “sneak-a-taxes” bill and says it does nothing to bring down the national deficit. “There are 84 sneak-a-taxes that nobody talks about,” he says. “So, the focus on this millionaire surtax is a distraction for people not to look into the body of the bill.”
Cain also defended his “9-9-9” Plan, saying that Americans would not pay any tax when they purchase used items such as a car. “They have an opportunity for them to leverage their income,” he explains. “The assumption made by the critics is that they are going to spend all of the rest of their money on new goods.”
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