Herman Cain Defends Remarks On Racism, Occupy Wall Street (VIDEO)

Herman Cain on Monday defended comments about racism he'd made over the weekend.

"I don't have a lot of patience for people who want to blame racism on the fact that some people don't make it in America," he said on FOX News Channel’s Hannity.

The GOP candidate claimed that his business and academic achievements were "walking proof " that racial discrimination doesn't hold people back.

His remarks backed up a similar complaint he made on Sunday's 'Face The Nation'.

"I don't believe racism in this country today holds anybody back in a big way," he had said.

The former Goldfather's Pizza CEO has taken heat for those remarks. Princeton professor Cornel West told CNN on Sunday that Cain "should get off the symbolic crack pipe" if he doesn't believe racism affects people.

Cain shot back on Monday that "West has been in academia too long. He is out of touch with the real world."

The republican hopeful also attacked Occupy Wall Street protesters for blaming banks rather than the president.

"I believe this a coordinated effort of the unions and Obama supporters to distract the American people from the real problem which is the failed policies of the Obama administration," he said.

Last week, Cain characterized the movement as un-American and charged that "if you don't have a job and you're not rich, blame yourself."

Cain surged in yesterday's Gallup poll, taking a close second place to Mitt Romney's first. The results are a sharp turn from last month's numbers, which had Cain tied for 4th after Romney, Rick Perry and Ron Paul.

Watch his full interview on Hannity below:

 

Comments

[freddypudwacker]

06:00 PM on 10/23/2011

The Jack Daniels ad was the best part.

[logic-a-go-go]

05:26 PM on 10/14/2011

Cain said, "if you don't have a job and you're not rich, blame yourself". How ludicrous. This is a good example of "laissez-faire racism", where minorities are blamed for pervasive structural inequality that have been historically and continue to be, embedded in our laws and policies. Ludicrious enough about minorities, but even more ridiculous, this statement wouldn't even be true about whites, who have historically had an advantage over minorities. Cain is clearly uninformed, and disturbingly unintelligent.

[Frog in a pot]

01:54 PM on 10/12/2011

Mr Cain seems to not understand how african americans have been put at a disadvantage by the loss of manufacturing jobs and the competition with illegals.I wonder how his own parents would have been able to compete with illegal labor.Without decent pay and good jobs its hard to have strong families.
And as wonderful as it is that he has made such a good life for himself how much is due to affirmative action {college,buisness loans ect...} helping him rise.
That said I hope the Rise of Cain and the election of Obama inspire the younger generation of black kids to stay in school instead of givng up before they start.Even though as we can see by the Wallstreet protests a college degree is no guarentee of any job never mind success anymore.
We can all be replaced.
Ask Rick Perry ,he specializes in replacing american workers.
Funny Cain wont focus on THAT huh...

[Reba Latimer]

10:36 PM on 10/13/2011

I could not agree with you more !

[ddarkfury]

11:13 PM on 10/13/2011

So why are manufacturing jobs lost? Do you have any clue at all? Other countries welcome business with open arms, we demonize it. We tax it, we burden it with so many laws that no business can keep track of them all. Would you rather be welcomed or demonized? ALL the politicians help big business crush their small competitors through subsidies and 'special' laws written by big corporations. Manufacturing is leaving socialist california in droves because of high taxes, and mandates from politicians who are clueless about manufacturing. Some mandates make it impossible to run certain operations in California, so those jobs leave for other states or countries.

At a time when the internet makes it easier than ever to have a business overseas, our establishment politicians are guided by donations from their big business buddies and NOT the health of the economy or the jobless numbers. Bush did it, Obama is doing it. The only way to stop it is to take away the politicians ability to reward big business. Flat taxes, no loopholes, no subsidies.

[logic-a-go-go]

05:42 PM on 10/14/2011

Here's a clue for YOU. Manufacturing jobs are leaving because greedy corporate CEO's want to line their pockets more and more to build their gigantic McMansions, and don't want to pay workers a fair wage. These same CEOs have ZERO allegiance to the United States--patriots they are NOT. The dollar is their only G O D. So they pull up stakes and move to places around the globe, where they can exploit natural resources and human labor for a pittance (perpetuating dependence and dire poverty), in order to create more and more wealth for themselves. And when those resources are gone, they will move once again around the globe to re-exploit, pollute, and take another poor country's natural resources. It has very little to do with high U.S. taxes. In fact, 2 out of 3 U.S. corporations paid NO federal taxes between 1998 and 2005 (US Government Accounting Office, 2008). It has much more to do with the sick national obsession by these American CEO's to gain wealth at whatever cost, even if it means doing something that will ultimately harm their own nation. Again, these are not patriots.

We might begin by looking at the top business schools in the U.S. to see where this is coming from, because certainly not all of us subscribe to the "wealth at any cost, including nation" principle. Wall Street might be another place to look, and wait-- I guess some folks are doing that.

[AdamKratt]

02:30 AM on 10/28/2011

Manufacturing Jobs are leaving because of the 2 Free Trade Agreements Bill Clinton signed ad the 2 Free Trade Agreements Barack Obama signed. If American companies can take American jobs to other countries and pay them $2 an hour and then ship it into the US duty and import free they will.. revoke all Free Trade Agreements and force American business to return to America... right now.. many American company have their corporate office in the US but all other parts of their operation is in 3rd world countries where they hire slave labor.

[stephan67]

11:17 AM on 10/12/2011

Cain is a ridiculous candidate.He is like an actor of an old Woody Allen film.Unbelievable that he is a presidential candidate!

[Judy Regina]

11:40 PM on 10/11/2011

I really feel Mr. Cain loves his own people and himself as he is a successful man and a strong person of character. He's old school, tough and I hear a definite frustration and "let me kick you in the pants" attitude in his remarks about poor blacks. He's saying do better, want better and be better and you can succeed. There is discrmination of all forms..against white, black, oriental, hispanic, woman, obese, short, tall. He's saying break away from the mindset of what race you are and try to achieve what you want to. I think he's a good man and blacks should not disown him as one of their own.

[1jadednewyorker]

09:04 AM on 10/12/2011

He loves his own people? Really that is what you take away from this guy? Blackfolks dont need him and you are in no position to pick who we own or disown.

[Frog in a pot]

01:57 PM on 10/12/2011

The "old school " had jobs to go too.Perry created his Texas "miricle " with illegal and legal imported labor not AMERICAN workers.
Compete with THAT!

[mrshep]

11:39 PM on 10/11/2011

Herman Cain doesn't know anything about the real world His smoke and mirrors 999 is such a joke, but come to think of it Cain is a joke. How can he stand up and say that if you don't have a job it is your own fault?

[ddarkfury]

11:00 PM on 10/13/2011

Get a job then talk to us. :)

[mrshep]

11:47 PM on 10/13/2011

I have had a job for over 40 years and been self employed for 25 with 50 employees on my payroll.

[Juliawerck]

11:26 PM on 10/11/2011

Herman Cain you are no Rosa Parks. ( Ever hear of her?)

[AdamKratt]

02:33 AM on 10/28/2011

Wasn't Rosa Parks a member of the Republican Party? and wasn't the segregationist members of the Democratic Party

[MichaelGuy]

11:05 PM on 10/11/2011

I Remember a line from a Rudyard Kipling Poem, "East is east and West is west and never the twain shall meet" It appears that liberals and conservatives, progressives and Tea Partiers are in same category. Do you ever wish for a real 10th Amendment instead of this constant internecine vying for contro;l in this Federalist-Two Party system? I wish there were liberal and progressive states as well as conservative ones. The influx or egress of populations, capital etc would show which ideas really promote freedom and prosperity. And we could each have a government that reflects the consent of the governed rather than feeling the opposite ideology/party is trying to impose a tyranny.

[ddarkfury]

11:03 PM on 10/13/2011

Sounds like an argument for states rights... a smaller federal government and let the states chose to liberal or conservative policies. You might want to look at Texas verse California. California used to be a great state. Now its a nearly bankrupt socialist state, but they keep doubling down on their socialist agenda. How long until conservative states like Texas have to bail it out?

[MichaelGuy]

11:45 PM on 10/13/2011

I believe that the 10th Amendment was based upon the Swiss Canton model along with the interstate tolerance allowed in the Dutch Republic. In a time of great religious wars the swiss and the Dutch allowed states to enforce some form of intra state uniformity in language and religion, even political systems, yet tolerted diversity among the states. I believe that model would better suit America than our federalist, nationalist system with two ideologies vying for domination of the nation.

[jffrybrk]

10:43 PM on 10/11/2011

Herman Cain is a disappointment to his race and to America. He realizes that he will not get the vote of African-Americans. Therefore, he has been willing to throw them under the bus to impress white voters. Cain is a racist as demonstrated in his slandering of African-Americans and Muslim-Americans, He truly does not like himself and finds it difficult to identify with any certain group of Americans. He wraps himself in a "Look-at-me, I'm a great success" cloak because this is how he can justify looking at himself in the mirror. What he fails to recognize is that the 98% of the Americans he wants to lead is neither impressed or tolerant of these antics.

[candycorn]

10:38 PM on 10/11/2011

Cain will go down like Rick Perry in a couple of weeks. He runs his mouth too much and says all the wrong things. Look in the mirror Cain. Stop being stupid.

[boomcat44]

10:26 PM on 10/11/2011

Most of the Cain supporters are the same ones who thought, Pawlenty, Bachmann, tRUMP, Perry and aborted Christie campaign, were great candidates too.
I hear they're thinking about asking Hank Williams, jr to join the race........

[WhiteGuy]

11:47 PM on 10/11/2011

Maybe Hank Williams can run against Jeremiah Wright's alter Boy Obama

[election2012]

10:13 PM on 10/11/2011

For someone who denies that racism is a significant factor, Mr. Cain spends an inordinate amount of time making an issue of it.

[Anonani]

09:58 PM on 10/11/2011

He surged amongst the same people who threw granny under the bus along with children, minorities, the working poor, the unemployed, and the disabled. Please note .... Cain threw them too.

This must stop.

[sixtieschild]

09:39 PM on 10/11/2011

Well whatever that percent is of support is that Cain has is a real clue into the number of Republicans who are completely insane. I wonder how they are able to function in society at all. Remarkable.

[Main Street Blues]

09:37 PM on 10/11/2011

Cain is the only one with any common sense. Perry is self absorbed, Romley just isn't up to par..so where do we go from here? Interesting how they all ditch the Occupy Wall Street crowd....they have no direction, they can't pinpoint what it is they want....wrong! It's about everything ..absolutely everything that is going wrong in our Nation...it's jobs, it's housing, it's greed, it's unfair practices, it's abuse of our Constitutional Rights, its big business controlling our Government....and these politicians and media simply excuse the Occupy Wall Street Movement as aimless ambitions and hopeless causes....wrong you all are, wrong you all have been to believe this. This is Main Street America annoucing that the Citizens of this great Nation trump the Banks, the Investment Firms, the Special Interest Groups, the Goldman Sachs...the Lobbyist...the Politicians....it is America speaking out that their is strength in numbers and Citizens come first! So listen closely....because our history of freedom, liberty and justice is coming your way Washington...Government is going to come back to the people. We are awake and we are not happy.