Herman Cain pulls out of consideration for Federal Reserve Board
Past allegations of harassment have dogged the one-time presidential candidate and a lack of support in the Senate has left him few options
Herman Cain is no longer a candidate for the Federal Reserve Board, according to a tweet from President Trump. The news comes after the chief executive had said he was considering the businessman, but that subsequently ran into past allegations of sexual harassment.
My friend Herman Cain, a truly wonderful man, has asked me not to nominate him for a seat on the Federal Reserve Board. I will respect his wishes. Herman is a great American who truly loves our Country!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 22, 2019
Trump first spoke of nominating Cain weeks ago, referring to him as “a very terrific man, a terrific person” that he recommended “highly for the Fed.”
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“I’ve told my folks that that’s the man,” Trump said at the time, adding that “I would imagine he would be in great shape” in clearing a background check, according to NBC News.
But Cain, who ran the Godfather’s Pizza chain for a decade in the 1980s and 1990s, suffered poor support in the Senate.
Republican senators Kevin Cramer of North Dakota, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Mitt Romney of Utah and Cory Gardner of Colorado said they didn’t support Cain’s nomination, which was significant because if the 47 Democrats each voted against his nomination, Cain would fail to garner the needed votes for confirmation.
Cain ran for president as a Republican in 2012, but ended his campaign abruptly after several women came forth with allegations that he sexually harassed them. Cain vehemently denied the allegations during that time and Trump, a friend of Cain’s, also said they reeked of an “unfair witch hunt.”
Cain seemed to realize his Federal Reserve Board nomination was in jeopardy because of the earlier allegations. This month, Cain posted a video to Facebook implying that he likely wouldn’t be confirmed.
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“You better believe that the people who hate me, who do not like conservatism … are already digging up the negative stuff that are in stories from eight years ago,” Cain wrote in the post.
Still, the White House persisted.
In a “Fox News Sunday” interview earlier this month, acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney said Cain’s nomination was fine and that he “would be a great member of the Fed.”
And last week, Cain told The Wall Street Journal that he wasn’t withdrawing his name.
The move by Cain to remove his name occurred while Trump’s most recent Federal Reserve nominee, Stephen Moore, has faced his own allegations of owing back taxes and failing to make alimony payments to his ex-wife.
