Cain (AP)
Herman Cain appeared on Fox News Wednesday night to make what was billed as a "very big announcement" on Sean Hannity's show.
But the hype far outran the actual event. The former Republican hopeful and pizza chain CEO did not endorse a current GOP candidate, as some had predicted he might. Nor did Cain announce he was getting back into the 2012 race, as Hannity teased.
Instead, Cain announced the launch--or continuation--of his 999 economic plan with another catchy tagline: "Cain's Solutions Revolution."
"The biggest comment when I ended my candidacy was, 'Keep 999 alive,' " Cain said. "And that's what this is about. The first solution we're going to promote actively is '999: The Revolution.' "
Cain continued: "The thing that didn't happen in Iowa--and it generally doesn't happen at a lot of the debates--is not enough is discussed about solutions, how you will fix things."
Cain also unveiled a new website for the endeavor with a name, CainConnections.com, that sounds vaguely like a personals site--perhaps not the most market-savvy move for a candidate who left the race with allegations about sexual harassment and an extramarital affair swirling around his head.
Cain said his goal is to get commitments from members of Congress to support his 999 plan before the 2012 election.
Earlier in the show, Cain was asked to assess the Iowa caucus results.
"Bittersweet," Cain said of watching the Iowa vote. "The sweet part was I didn't have to put my family through that grinder."
The bitter part, he said, was knowing what could have been--had the Cain train not been derailed by multiple sexual harassment allegations.
"When I ended my candidacy, I was leading in Iowa in those polls," Cain said.
Gingrich's fall from the top of those polls in the final weeks before the caucuses proved to Cain negative attacks work.
"You got to have the money to respond quickly and neutralize some it," Cain said--and, as Cain noted, Gingrich lacked the funds for a rapid-response operation.
Rick Santorum did well in Iowa "because he shook a lot of hands," Cain added. "Romney did as well as he did because he spent a lot of money."
The razor-thin margin of Romney's victory over Santorum and Paul meant there were no clear winners, Cain added. "It was basically a statistical tie," he concluded. "Nobody can crow that they won."
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